In New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, 2006 is an election year. These three states are where the 90-member organizations of the Hispanic Federation offer the majority of their services.

For our community, the elections will take place in a time of profound changes, due to the debate about the present and future situation of thousands of undocumented immigrants. Beyond that, these elections will also carry consequences for Latinos who have their permanent residency, or who are citizens, whether by birth or naturalization.

Hispanic community leaders, including the members of the Hispanic Federation, agree that the greater the number of Latinos who become citizens and register to vote, the greater the influence of the Hispanic community will be over the decisions of elected officials.

For this reason, it is essential that our community participate in the electoral and political process of the nation. Those who are entitled to vote ought to do so without fail; those who have not registered to vote ought to do so, and those who are not yet citizens should become so as soon as they have complied with the requirements.

Since its founding in 1980, the Hispanic Federation has actively promoted electoral participation among the Latino community. This work is closely allied with the efforts of several organizations specializing in immigration problems, since for Latinos not born in this country full participation in the political process demands some previous steps, such as obtaining legal residency, becoming a U.S. citizen and registering to vote.

This year, New York voters will elect a new governor and lieutenant Governor, a national senator, representatives to the U.S. Congress, and the state comptroller and attorney general. In New Jersey, meanwhile, those up for election are the governor, a senator and several representatives to Washington, and several state legislators. Connecticut will elect a governor and one of its two senators.

One of the ways the Hispanic Federation helps register voters is by means of its bilingual information and registration telephone line, 1-866-HF-AYUDA, or 1-866-432-9832. If a voter calls this number and provide the Federation with his or her personal information, a registration form will be sent, which the voter can sign and return to the Federation free of charge, as return postage will be included.