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AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes
18,000 people became citizens of the Los Angeles area and beyond today at the Los Angeles Convention Center downtown. Today's high number broke local records with a 350 percent increase in citizenship applications that swarmed offices last summer before fees raised $275 to $675 on August 1st. There were so many people today, officials had to do the ceremony three times.
"On top of that, Spanish-language media, including Univision and Telemundo, launched massive campaigns to get more immigrants to become citizens and vote," reported the Associated Press. Radio host Eduardo "Piolin" Sotelo of a nationally syndicated Univision Radio show was also there to become a citizen. "Now we have one more vote to defend our rights," he reportedly said. Make that more like 18,000 more votes.