Election 2008 / The Fight for the Latino Vote
Obama, McCain and their awkward Hispanic outreach By LAURA WIDES-MUNOZ, AP Hispanic Affairs Writer
Sun Jul 13, 10:24 AM ET
ORLANDO, Fla. - Like eager but awkward suitors, Barack Obama and John McCain are working hard and sometimes fumbling in their efforts to court Hispanic voters who could swing November's presidential election.
For the African-American Obama and white Anglo McCain, the problem is less one of language than of trying to understand a group whose own diversity can make it a mystery to others. It's not a simple matter of saying, "Take me to your leaders."
But that, in essence, is the ground game the presidential candidates and their campaigns have been playing in pitching to voters who could form decisive constituencies in critical battleground states.
"They just come to me and say, 'Who are the bosses of the Latin community?'" said Patrick Manteiga, who runs a family-owned newspaper for Hispanics in Tampa's historic Cuban neighborhood of Ybor City. "That's like coming and asking, 'Who are the bosses of white America, of the soccer moms?'"
Both candidates are pressing their case in three speeches in as many weeks to Hispanic umbrella groups and working in other ways to make their outreach more sophisticated. Republicans have opened an office in Orlando, where most of the state's Puerto Ricans live, and Obama opens one this week in Ybor City...Full Story:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080713/ap_on_el_pr/hispanic_voters;_ylt=AkVPBsp5Otznc4xqMNnWVQBh24cA
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LatinoSpeak.net (6/20/08)- As the primary selection for both major parties comes to a close, both presumptive nominees, John McCain and Barack Obama have begun their national efforts at courting the ever crucial Latino vote.
A few battleground states where Latinos represent a sizable portion of the electorate, such as New Mexico, Florida, Nevada and Colorado, have become even more important to both candidates.
The Latino community is the fastest-growing minority group in the country, making up approximately 14 percent of the U.S. population. Estimates indicate that 9.3 million Latinos could potentially participate in the 2008 elections, an increase of 23 percent from four years ago.
But five months out from election day a new poll conducted by NBC/WSJ showed that 62% of Hispanic voters prefer Obama versus 28% for McCain. The support for Obama comes even after Latinos overwhelmingly supported Sen. Hillary Clinton during the democratic primary selection.
Many experts believe that there are some major national issues that the candidates will have to address before the November election that are of great concern to the Latino electorate.
Update: On 6/28, Both McCain and Obama spoke at the annual conference of NALEO, the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials focusing on issues of concern to Latinos and both offered their positions on immigation reform.
McCain: "I and many other colleagues twice attempted to pass comprehensive immigration legislation to fix our broken borders; ensure respect for the laws of this country; recognize the important economic necessity of immigrant laborers; apprehend those who came here illegally to commit crimes; and deal practically and humanely with those who came here, … We must prove to them that we can and will secure our borders first, while respecting the dignity and rights of citizens and legal residents of the United States. But we must not make the mistake of thinking that our responsibility to meet this challenge will end with that accomplishment. We have economic and humanitarian responsibilities as well, and they require no less dedication from us in meeting them." (6/28/08, NALEO annual conference)
Obama: "We need immigration reform that will secure our borders, and punish employers who exploit immigrant labor; reform that finally brings the 12 million people who are here illegally out of the shadows by requiring them to take steps to become legal citizens. We must assert our values and reconcile our principles as a nation of immigrants and a nation of laws. That is a priority I will pursue from my very first day." (6/28/08, NALEO annual conference)
Obama supported and McCain co-sponsored the Bush-backed immigration legislation that approve construction of of a 700-mile fence along the U.S.-Mexican border.
This election could be a true test of the political influence that the Latino vote has in modern day politics and the power of the Latino voice in the selection of the next president of the United States.
A Few Quotes...
Both candidates support construction of a wall at the southern U.S. border. “But the most important differences are less obvious and have more to do with what kind of reform the candidates advocate for and try to get approved” according to Cecilia Muñoz, vice president of the National Council of La Raza (NCLR). ( June 12, 2008 La Opinion)
“Neither of the two is talking about the Hispanic community. They want our vote, but so far they are yet to define what they are going to do for Hispanic voters…Since we are the largest minority in this country, they have the moral duty to talk about Hispanic people in the United States and about US relations with Latin America” says the Reverend Luis Cortes, the leader of the largest Hispanic Protestant organization in the country, Esperanza USA (June 14, 2008 Deutsche Presse-Agentur)
Name recognition will continue to be a challenge for Obama among Latinos. McCain's problem will be the tarnished reputation of his party…. the GOP's association with hard-line measures is a galvanizing force among Latino voters. While only half of them are immigrants, most have come to see the anti-illegal immigrant crusade of the last three years as an anti-Latino movement, writes Marcela Sanchez (June 12, 2008, washingtonpost.com)
“Obama did not have the chance to introduce himself to the Latino voters. He, (Obama) needs to get out there and understand their issues,” according to Arturo Vargas, National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (June 14, 2008, digitaljournal.com)
(photos: CNNPolitics.com)
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