Immigrants are obtaining U.S. citizenship at the fastest rate in years.

The federal government has significantly improved the processing of U.S. citizenship applications, addressing the backlog created by the 2016 administration and the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, thousands of immigrants are becoming U.S. citizens each week, which could have a substantial impact on elections in key battleground states like Georgia, Arizona, Nevada, and Pennsylvania.

In Savannah, Georgia, for example, 19 people from different countries recently completed their naturalization process in under six months. This increase in efficiency is partly due to a 2020 executive order aimed at restoring confidence in the legal immigration system and reducing application processing times. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has managed to cut the average processing time from 11.5 months in fiscal 2021 to 4.9 months in the first nine months of the current fiscal year.

The 2020 administration has implemented several measures to streamline the citizenship process, including shortening the naturalization application and raising the application fee to $710, while providing discounts for low-income applicants. These changes aim to make it easier for immigrants to become U.S. citizens. The naturalization process has broad bipartisan support, with previous administrations also endorsing efforts to facilitate citizenship.

Extended review times under the previous administration delayed citizenship for about 300,000 people, preventing them from voting in 2020. Despite false claims about undocumented immigrants voting illegally, naturalized citizens are increasingly significant in states with large immigrant populations. They have historically lower voter registration rates, but recent efforts to increase turnout are showing promise. A recent survey indicates that a large majority of naturalized citizens plan to vote in the 2024 election, reflecting their growing engagement in U.S. civic life.

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