Large numbers of immigrants who are permanent residents apply for U.S. citizenship so they can vote in November
Many of them say they're doing it so they can vote against Donald Trump
One attorney says all those new citizens could be "a game changer"
(CNN)When Donald Trump speaks at one of his rallies, Gisell Broch physically reacts. She cringes.
"He's like a punch to the gut."
That punch is so palpable that it's shaken the Cuba native out of a 22-year contentment at simply holding her green card. Thanks to Trump, she's seeking her U.S. citizenship in time to vote against him in November.
"He's a racist," said Broch, from her front row seat at a naturalization information session in Homestead, Florida. When Broch files her paperwork, she expects she'll vote for "anyone but Trump" as her first vote as a U.S. citizen.
Trump's campaign pledge to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and his statement that Mexico sends criminals, drugs and rapists into America have become a rallying cry for Latinos. The Trump campaign says his proposed immigration reforms will end up benefiting legal Latino immigrants.
Like the visible protests at Trump's rallies, quiet yet powerful protests have been brewing among immigrants who are permanent residents in the United States since Trump's campaign announcement last June.
Figures from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services show a 14.5% jump in naturalization applications in June-December of 2015 compared with the same six months in the previous year. Federal data does not break down those applications by race, but grass-roots organizations, like the Florida Immigrant Coalition, say their naturalization drives across their swing state are filled primarily by Latinos.
"They feel very unsafe with his words," said Florida Immigrant Coalition spokesman Ivan Parra. "They want to be respected. For them, it is an emergency."
Parra was one of the lawyers weaving through people from table to table in a donated space at a mall in Lauderhill, Florida. The event opened at 10 a.m., but the line had begun to form at 5 a.m., said Broward County Commissioner Dale Holness. At least 50 people showed up without appointments, hoping to begin filing paperwork.
Holness said in the 40 years he's lived in Florida, he's never seen this many residents filing for citizenship. Naturalization advocates say applications typically spike in election years, but this year has been extraordinary.
"Trump's tone is getting people scared. Though he's often saying 'illegal,' the legal people who've been here don't feel secure either. They could be next. So for one, they want to protect themselves so they don't get thrown out for any reason. Two, they want to make sure they're engaged to the extent that they can contribute to insuring that Trump's not the person," he said.
