We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. - US Declaration of Independence
Fifty-six people signed these words and gave birth to the United States of America. Six of these were foreign-born. As the newborn nation built its constitution, eight foreign-born people signed to cement the framework that ensures its well-functioning. Migrants are central to the advent of democracy in our lives.
Yet, migrants can seldom vote. We are taxed without being represented. We are colonial laborers in the land in which we reside. I believe this should change.
Closer to Home
In Dusseldorf, where I live, over a quarter of the residents are foreign-born. And just about one-quarter of these can vote in German elections (6% of the population). Given that the biggest political party in the last elections gained a bit under 25% of the vote, it is easy to imagine that German politics would be upended if migrants were to vote.
Germany is actively trying to help migrants gain the chance to vote. But many migrants might not want to. We migrate for a plurality of reasons. We might not want to become nationals, but we still should have a vote.
This last sentence often meets with repulsion. Why should someone who might leave be given the right to vote? Well, because German society is built on the work of migrants, and even if this specific person might leave tomorrow, the same day, another one would come. One should not have representation only if one chooses to die in a country. Voting should be a human right. It might sound extreme, but many European countries allow foreign born residents to vote in their local elections (e.g. Promote the Migrant Vote in UK). I just have a more extreme view: everyone should be able to vote, even babies.
A Party of the Former Migrants
Here is what I propose. I envision a political party aimed at representing the people who cannot vote and the naturalized citizens who once upon a time could not vote..A political party aimed at representing people born abroad who are now part of our society.
This proposition is distinct from any other political party. It promotes the welfare of the quarter of the Dusseldorf population who migrated from abroad and now live in our city. However, as only around 6% of the electorate is foreign-born, the future of this party will require a broader base.
Migrants Families
In 2023, in Germany, 11% of all marriages involved one foreign-born and one German citizen. If we were to scale this insight, we could imagine that around 17% of the population are foreign-born people who can vote or are married to a foreign-born person. My household meets this criterion; my wife casts the only vote in our household.
The important point is that migration has big implications for the lives of our partners as well. My wife might not face the threat of being extradited, but our whole household shares the agony of waiting 10 months for my visa extension (8 more than it should).
A political party that aims to foment the welfare of migrants would make the lives of myriads and households in Germany better. We might not be able to vote today, but we will soon. And we do not forget the people who hurt my family.
Racist Nightmare
It has long been my dream to cause nightmares to racists. My wife and I engaged in acts of white genocide last year. The same year, it came out that people within the German Racist Party had been in meetings to plan the deportation of my wife, child, and me to some non-existent German colony. So, the war is on; I cherish acting on their doom as they plan ways to send me abroad.
I say this because a party for the people who cannot vote is nightmare fuel for the racists. And I cannot wait for it to exist.
Note on Camp
In 2016, Peter Plasman founded a political party called Niet Stemmers (Non-Voters) in the Netherlands. The party's purpose was to represent non-voters by consistently abstaining from votes in parliament. In the 2017 parliamentary elections, the party received around 6,000 votes, about 0.06% of the total, and did not win a seat.
The concept behind Niet Stemmers was to give visibility to the non-voting population’s voice within parliament. By choosing not to participate in any parliamentary votes, the party sought to highlight the dissatisfaction and lack of trust in politics among non-voters. While the initiative garnered some attention, it did not lead to significant changes in the political engagement of non-voters in the Netherlands.
As such, Niet Stemmers was a form of performance art, a form of what Susan Sontag would call Camp. There was no chance of winning, but the existence of the party highlighted a void in our society that caused the nonvoters to choose to be unrepresented.
One Migrant One Vote
This idea of a migrant voting party follows a similar aesthetic. It might be that the party could exist. It might be that if founded, our migrant background would make us loyal to one another. But that need not be. And honestly, even if no one is elected from this initiative, the idea of elevating a discussion about how vast portions of the tax payers are unrepresented in our political bodies could be enough. At least fostering this discussion could be enough to motivate me to try this idea. I would see it as a form of performance art. Like Nathan, I would go through the motions to build a party, attend meetings, and engage with the electorate to show how painful I find it that a quarter of Dusseldorf's residents are barred from voting in the running of our city.
CODA
You might have noticed that the Migrant Voting Party might have merits to be a real political party and not just a form of performance art. I hear you. I call it art because making it real and part of my identity is too painful. With art, I can pretend to do it as an aesthetic and not as its true function, i.e., a way of alleviating my pain. That said, making the German Racist Party hate me could be fun enough. #fakingBravery
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