Abel Salazar has had a momentous year.
Since last February, the Lima native and Everett resident applied for his US citizenship, became a father for the second time, and was sworn in as an American citizen.
On Tuesday, Salazar plans to vote in the state's presidential primary, his first election as an American.
Salazar admits he did not pay too much attention to local or national politics prior to last year, focusing instead on his job and family. It wasn't until he applied for citizenship that he began to immerse himself in all things political.
"I didn't even know who our mayor was, and I thought I'd better find out in case it was a question on the citizenship test," he said in his native Spanish. After taking the oath Aug. 15, "Immediately, I went to City Hall and I registered to vote."
Talking politics is now part of his daily life, including conferring with his colleagues at the restaurant chain in Chestnut Hill where he has worked for 11 years, working his way up from a $6-an-hour dishwasher to an assistant manager.
"I listen to people at work, Americans, Hispanics, Puerto Ricans, who've always been able to vote, and they seem to prefer the Democratic Party, while others like the Republicans," Salazar said. "For the most part, they say that the Democrats are more sympathetic to immigrants and that the Republicans tend to be more discriminatory toward them. I know from my own experience that some immigrants here are discriminated against."
The election process here, with the debates and the advertisements, is new to Salazar.
It's not just the American political process that Salazar favors, but also the quality of life. In Lima, Salazar was broke and lived around violence.
He estimated he earned the equivalent of $100 a month. By contrast, the United States was enjoying low unemployment rates and a growing economy.
On March 28, 1995, Salazar arrived in New Jersey, where he spent a week before moving to Everett, where he now resides with his girlfriend, 3-year-old son, and 8-month-old daughter.
Salazar said he is looking forward to having a say in voting for policies that will benefit the Hispanic community. But family comes first.
"Now I have my kids, and I want them to get a good education here," he said. "More than anything, I'm excited about voting for the well-being of my family. Now I have a voice."
