Alameda County's Spanish and Chinese-speaking residents can expect more poll workers who speak their language, and more election outreach in their native languages, thanks to a settlement reached between the county and the U.S. Department of Justice. 

“The right to vote is the foundation of our democracy, and language barriers should never keep citizens from accessing that right,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division, in a statement released Tuesday.

“Today’s agreement ensures that Alameda County’s Spanish and Chinese-speaking citizens will be able to cast an effective ballot and successfully participate in the electoral process," Perez said.

The settlement stems from a lawsuit filed by the Justice Department against the county. In the suit, the DOJ alleges that the county failed to uphold the Voting Rights Act by not translating and distributing election-related materials in Mandarin, Cantonese and Spanish, and for not training enough poll workers who speak those languages, the Oakland Tribune reports. 

The agreement between the county and DOJ must still be approved by the federal district court. 

Also under the settlement, Alameda County would have to ensure that all Chinese and Spanish-language signage at polling stations is displayed as prominently as English-language signage. The county would also have to form a citizen advisory group to help determine the best way to serve Chinese and Spanish-speaking voters. 

“It’s obvious that in Union City that we need to have the type of language access that reflects the population," said Christopher Cara, an organizer with social services advocacy group Filipino Advocates for Justice.

Nearly half of Union City's population is Asian and 22.9 percent is Hispanic, according to the 2010 Census, although not all people who define themselves as belonging to these groups speak their native languages.  

In all of Alameda County, Hispanic people make up 22.5 percent of the population, while nearly 10 percent are Chinese.

During the November 2010 elections, FAJ assisted the Asian Law Caucus by monitoring polling stations in Union City to check the availability of translated materials and oral assistance.

According to Christopher Punongbayan, an attorney and deputy director of the Asian Law Caucus, the group found that the county did not provide enough translated documents and failed to provide adequate notice of availalble translated documents.

Under a provision of California electoral law, which expands upon the federal Voting Rights Act, counties with non-English speaking citizens who make up 3 percent or more of the population must provide electoral and ballot information in that population's native language. They also must provide poll workers who are fluent in that language. 

"We're pleased that this is the outcome," Punongbayan said. "Language should not be a barrier in the ability of citizens to cast their vote."

Alameda County Supervisor Wilma Chan, who represents District 3, told the Oakland Tribune that the county would have to recruit volunteer poll workers to comply with the settlement.

The county recently eliminated over 100 positions and made cuts to health care, public assistance and public protection in order to close a $138 million budget gap.