Juan stayed at the park and visited with Jaime for another half hour. Juan explained that it wasn’t illegal for him to set up a voter registration booth in a public park.
He told Jaime about his full-time job at the metal fabrication company and how he’d come to do part-time election work through his connections with his Uncle Pablo. “I made a deal with my boss to work on the weekends so I could take a couple days off during the week to do this,” he waved at his tablet and satchel case. “I don’t have to work too hard, and the money is pretty good. Plus, it gives me a little more time to spend with my wife.”
This last comment drew a small smile and a silent nod of approval from Jaime.
“What about you, Jaime?” Juan asked. “What are you doing at the park in the middle of the day?”
“Oh, I’m too old for working,” he said. “I’ve got a couple of rentals that I manage now. So, I’ve got time to spend with the grandkids.” Jaime glanced over to where the two children were playing.
Juan leaned back against the tailgate of his pickup. “Rentals?”
“Yeah, I got a couple of houses over there,” Jaime waved his arm in a vaguely northward direction.
Juan considered this for a minute. “How many renters you got?”
“I’ve got four houses,” Jaime replied, waving back at one of the kids trying to show off on the jungle gym.
Juan shook his head, “No, I mean, how many people do you have living in them, total?”
Jaime’s eyebrows arched up. “Total? You mean kids too?”
“Anyone over eighteen,” Juan clarified.
Jaime counted on his fingers for a minute. “I wish my wife were here. She knows all the families,” he said. Finally, he turned, dropped his hands and sighed, “Oh, I don’t know, maybe about twenty people.”
Juan smiled conspiratorially, “They’re worth two hundred dollars each to sign them up to vote,” he said. “I can show you how to do it.”
Jaime’s jaw dropped. He started counting on his fingers again. “Mother of God,” he breathed. “That’s four thousand dollars.”
“We don’t have to tell them that,” Juan said with a wink. “We could just tell them their ballots are only worth one hundred dollars each. You could get the rest.”