BACKGROUND

Southwest Voter Registration Education Project (SVREP) is a non-profit, non-partisan Latino civic education organization. Founded in San Antonio, Texas, in 1974 by William C. Velásquez - champion of the Mexican American voting rights movement, SVREP has been serving communities in the Southwest for more than 20 years. The organization first opened its doors in California in 1984 to increase statewide political and civic participation of Latinos.

MISSION

SVREP is committed to educate Latino communities across the Southwest about the democratic process, the importance of voter registration, and voter participation. At its core is its mission to politically empower Latinos by increasing civic engagement in the American electoral system. This can only be attained through the strengthening and exercising of the fundamental right to vote. Thus, SVREP's motto: "Su voto es su voz." (Your Vote is Your Voice).

SVREP, WCVI, AND THE LATINO ACADEMY

SVREP works closely with a consortium of sister organizations like the William C. Velásquez Institute (WCVI), the country's leading research center on Latino population data; and the Latino Academy, SVREP's training school designed to instruct community leaders, activists and elected officials in the areas of public speaking governance, leadership, fundraising and campaigns.

VOTER EDUCATION

SVREP has conducted more than 2,200 voter registration campaigns in 14 states and successfully undertaken more than 100 voting rights litigations. The Los Angeles office alone, oversees a network of more than 30,000 Latino civic leaders and activists in five states who over the last 25 years have conducted get-out-the-vote projects in more than 250 cities across the southwest.

As a direct result of these efforts, Latino voter rates increased from 2 million in 1974 to an extraordinary 7.7 million in 2001. During the 1996 presidential elections, a record-number of 1,351,142 million (a 37.5% increase from 1992) Latinos turned out to vote in California. Latinos cast 1.61 million votes in the 2000 election, an increase of 268,000 votes or 19.8% over the 1996 election. Latinos also represented a record 15.2% of all votes cast in California.

Consequently, the number of Latino elected officials has also increased from less than 1,500 to more than 6,000 nationwide. This rise in Latino political participation is directly attributable to SVREP's community information, mobilization and coalition-building efforts. Additionally since its inception SVREP has trained over 100,000 volunteers in over fourteen states increasing overall civic involvement.

LEADERSHIP AND ADVOCACY

Over the course of 20 years, SVREP has been at the forefront of major social and political gains for Latinos in the U.S. and throughout Latin America. While its primary mission is voter registration and education, within the last ten years, SVREP has become increasingly active in other areas as well, especially that of economic empowerment including: U.S. /Mexico & Latin American relations, and international economic and technical development [The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), The North American Development Bank (NADBank), and LatinoNet].

SVREP is also involved in immigration issues; community organizing; education and training of community leaders and elected officials; U.S. foreign and international policy development; and accountability of elected officials.

With more than 35 million Latinos in the U.S., SVREP's messages and efforts address broad-based human concerns that cross-cultural barriers and apply to all people. Through the use of telecommunications technologies and the media, SVREP hopes to continue providing voter outreach and education, increase civic and economic participation, and strengthen the increasing Latino electorate.

For more information about SVREP, please contact our offices in San Antonio or Los Angeles. Additionally visit www.svrep.org to see the progress that SVREP has made in strengthening the Latino political presence.