Melat Quiroz Advocates for More Immigrant Representation
Melat Quiroz, a socialist who recently beat 15-term Representative Diana DeGette in Colorado’s Democratic primary for the 1st Congressional District, argues that the U.S. needs to elect more immigrants, particularly from the “Global South,” in order to provoke necessary changes in the global order.
At the Waela Tigray conference in Denver, which promotes community building, Quiroz emphasized the need for a reassessment of the current global structures. “We need to examine the global order and how it must fundamentally shift as we move forward,” she stated to the audience.
She continued, stressing that Americans must recognize their responsibilities and the exploitative nature of the current interactions on the global stage. “This requires representation from those who truly understand these issues, and that’s why we need more immigrants and people from Global South backgrounds in office,” Quiroz explained.
The term “Global South” commonly refers to nations in regions like Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and parts of Asia.
Quiroz, who immigrated from Ethiopia, shared her personal connection to the Diversity Visa Lottery—her father won a visa shortly after her birth in 1997. This program was established by the Immigration Act of 1990.
The Diversity Visa Lottery provides up to 55,000 visas annually to foreign nationals from various countries, some facing significant challenges, including Iraq, Nigeria, and Venezuela.
Research consistently shows that areas with larger populations of foreign-born residents tend to lean Democratic in elections. Notably, a survey indicated that among naturalized voters, support for Kamala Harris in the upcoming election far exceeded that for Trump—55% versus 41%.
With recent changes in the Biden administration boosting the number of naturalized voters, they are expected to constitute about 10% of the electorate in 2024, greatly enhancing the political influence of those born outside the U.S.
In a 2019 analysis, Ronald Brownstein noted that Democrats win in about 90% of districts with a higher foreign-born population than the national average. This statistic suggests that in districts where over 15.5% of the population is foreign-born, the chances drastically favor Democratic candidates.
Major media outlets have highlighted how demographic shifts driven by immigration are increasingly favoring the Democratic Party’s long-term prospects. Axios shared in 2019 that these changes pose, quite drastically, a significant challenge to the Republican Party’s future.
