Amis has called the U.S. home for more than 25 years. After her family fled the violence of Guatemala, she went to school and worked with a green card status here for years. But it wasn’t until recently that Amis and her mother, Consuelo, made the decision to apply for official U.S. citizenship—just in time to vote in the 2016 elections.

For thousands of immigrants like Amis and Consuelo, a heated election cycle may have been the prompt they needed to naturalize. While the application process is complex and costly, citizenship opens doors for those who have been living and working in the U.S. for years.

After being granted citizenship in the swing state of Nevada, Amis was able to cast her first vote ever. In this video, we follow her journey to capture how immigrants are coming together through participation in the electoral process to bolster their communities.