LOS ANGELES — Reflecting on family photos from her vacations in Mexico always fills Cynthia de La Torre with a deep sense of happiness. It’s where she spent more than half of her childhood.

“I was born here, and then when I was about… maybe 3, we moved to Mexico and came back when I was like 10, and I stayed here since then,” she said. “And I actually grew up in Ventura.”

De la Torre visited Mexico several times a year, and those frequent trips are just one of the reasons she became a dual citizen of both Mexico and the United States. It also allowed her and her husband to buy land across the border, which is one of the reasons de la Torre is trying to gain dual citizenship for her two children as well.

“If we inherit it to them, then they’re able to claim that as well,” she said. “And secondly, every time we go, if you’re there for more than seven days, you get charged a fee. So if you’re a Mexican citizen, you don’t.” 

De la Torre isn’t alone. Over the past three years, there has been a sharp rise in the amount of people seeking Mexican citizenship. In 2022, the Mexican consulate saw an increase of 81.89% from 2021. In 2023, it saw an increase of 64.32%. And this year, it expects to see an increase of 28.77% from 2023.

“There’s a great demand by far of all the services we provide,” said Carlos González Gutiérrez, consul general of Mexico in Los Angeles. “By far, the one in which we are overwhelmed by the demand is the dual nationality services.”

González Gutiérrez added that three years ago, the Mexican Senate made the process of becoming a Mexican citizen easier for the descendants of Mexican nationals.

“By making explicit that it didn’t matter how many generations, you could always transmit Mexican nationality to your children if you’re a Mexican national, even if you or your children were born overseas, beyond Mexican territory,” he said.

González Gutiérrez noted that more people are understanding you can be a good and loyal citizen of both countries.

Immigration experts say the political climate could also be a reason for the increase.

“There’s another chatter in the background, about it happening now because of all of this rhetoric by the presidential candidate, former President Trump, about all these mass deportations that will take effect if he’s elected,” said Jean Reisz, clinical professor at the USC Gould School of Law who specializes in immigration.

But Reisz also said that as a dual citizen, you have a farther global reach.

For de la Torre, that’s what she wants for her children, who already feel comfortable traveling back and forth from Mexico.