Mexican Lawmakers Approve Absentee Voting for Millions of Migrants in U.S.

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Mexican Lawmakers Approve Absentee Voting for Millions of Migrants in U.S.

By Will Weissert Associated Press Writer
Published: Jun 28, 2005


http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGBV9EYNIAE.html



MEXICO CITY (AP) - Lawmakers overwhelming approved on Tuesday a law allowing millions of Mexicans living abroad to vote by mail in next year's presidential election - a measure that could reshape the country's leadership race.
To chants of "Viva Mexico," the lower house of Congress passed an absentee voting proposal 455-6 with six abstentions. The bill was already approved by Mexico's Senate and now only needs to signed by President Vicente Fox to become law- something he has promised to do.

As their colleagues cast votes on the electronic board, dozens of visiting migrants waved flags and sang the Mexican national anthem.

President Vicente Fox, traveling in Belize, called the measure's approval something "all of Mexico should celebrate."

"It brings justice to many Mexicans," Fox said, adding that migrants overseas "are informed, have access to international information ... and will be a great addition, with their decisions and their ideas" to the electoral process.

An estimated 11 million Mexicans, as much as 14 percent of the country's electorate, live overseas, most in the United States. Expatriates are legally allowed to vote and hold dual citizenship, but have been effectively barred from participating in elections because of the lack of an absentee ballot system.