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Council of Spanish Residents (CRE)
The Councils od Spanish Residents (CREs = Consejos de Residentes Españoles) are advisory bodies of the Spanish consulates overseas on subjects of general interest to the Spanish expatriates in their corresponding consular delegations. The CREs focus on civil and labor rights, education, culture and social affairs affecting the Spanish community.
There is a CRE in Nueva York. The members of its board were elected on December 10, 2006:
- Mª Jesús Fernández Serans (Secretary)
- Neir Taboada Gamallo (Treasurer)
- Joe García Balado
- Juan Benítez Vera
- Ángel Capellán Gonzalo
- Inmaculada Heredia Álvarez
Contact information for the New York CRE:
Number of Spaniards in the U.S.
It is very difficult to know exactly how many Spanish citizens work and reside in the United States. In addition to a stable community of workers registered in the consulates of Spain in the United States, there is a sizable number of unregistered students and residents.
Spaniards Registered in Consulates in the U.S.
The nine General Consulates of Spain in the United States maintain a Registry of Spanish Voters Residing Overseas, known as CERA. Although all Spanish nationals abroad who are eighteen years of age or older are encouraged to register with CERA so that they can vote in Spanish elections, the truth is that there are many Spaniards in the United States not registered. Even with this caveat, the CERA data provides the most accurate glimpse at the size of the Spanish migration to the United States.
According to the 2008 CERA numbers, there are about 50,000 Spanish nationals registered. In the last six years, the number of registrations in the Spanish consulates in the US has increased 21%.
Distribution by Region of Origin
Madrid is is the Spanish region with the highest number of residents registered in Spanish consulates in the US with 27% of the total. Galicia (20%), Cataluña and Andalucia (about 10% each) are next on the list.
Distribution by Consulate
The Spanish consulates with the highest numbers of CERA registrations are New York, with about 14,000, and Miami, which tops 12,000 registrations. Next on the list are Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington D.C., Chicago and Houston, with between 2,500 and 5,000 registrations each. Boston and New Orleans complete the list, with less than 2,000 registrations each.
Trend
The registrations in the consulates in Chicago and Miami grew in the last six years by about 40%, twice faster than the total. The registrations in the consulates in San Francisco and New York increased by about 20%, and those in Washington DC, Los Angeles and Boston between 10% and 15%. The number of registrations in the consulate in Houston increased 4%, and in New Orleans, the only one with negative growth, decreased by 8%.
Source: Spanish National Institute of Statistics.
