Study: Latinos will play key role in 2010 Texas governor's race

[sonias]

San Antonio Express News - Texas on the Potomac blog 2/9/10
Study: Latinos will play key role in 2010 Texas governor's race

Latino voters could play a key role in deciding the outcome of several key 2010 political races across the country, including the Texas gubernatorial contest, a new report released Monday by liberal groups concluded.

The report from America's Voice, a group that advocates for comprehensive immigration reform, found that the economy remains the top issue of concern to Hispanics. But it concluded that candidates' positions on immigration reform could make a big difference in hotly contested elections.

Eliseo Medina, international executive vice president of the Service Employees International Union, called immigration reform a "litmus test" for many in the Latino community in deciding how to vote.

The report cited a poll concluding that 87 percent of Latino voters said they wouldn't consider voting for a candidate who was in favor of forcing most undocumented workers to leave the country.

(snip)
Latino voters make up 21.7 percent of Texas voters and have supported Republican candidates such as George W. Bush in the past.

Since then, demonization of Latinos by some Republicans pushed many Latinos back to Democratic candidates, said Frank Sharry, executive director of America's Voice.

This trend can be seen in presidential votes in Texas where Latino voters chose Barack Obama over John McCain, 63 percent to 35 percent. In 2004, the vote was more evenly split with John Kerry getting 49 percent of the Latino vote and Bush getting 50 percent, according to the report.

Keep it up republican ass-holes. Keep bashing Latino immigrants.

One day we will give you your pink slip - for good!:grr:


Sonia

[sonias]

1. Report link

www.americasvoiceonline.org/pages/latino_voter_report
The Power of the Latino Voter in the 2010 Elections

(snip)T
Immigration Debate – A Key Factor in Shift Toward Democrats
Although immigration is not the number one issue for most Latino voters, it is clearly a defining
issue. Like all Americans, the economic crisis continues to be the biggest concern for Latinos
voters. However, their closeness to the immigrant experience makes immigration reform a
threshold issue for many.

According to a report by the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), “the potency of immigration as
a ‘voting issue’ should not be underestimated. Both polling data and Hispanic voting behavior
over multiple election cycles shows that immigration serves as a lens through which Latinos
assess the political environment and candidate attitudes not just toward immigrants, but
toward their community as a whole.”vii In a May 2009 poll of Latino voters by Bendixen &
Associates, 82% of Latino voters said that the immigration issue is important to them and their
families, and 69% said that they personally know someone who is undocumented. A
November 2009 poll of Latino voters by ImpreMedia, Latino Decisions, and the Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation Center for Health Policy at the University of New Mexico found that
immigration reform was the top issue for foreign‐born Latino voters, who make up about 40%
of the electorate.

An overwhelming 87% of respondents in the Bendixen poll said they would not consider voting
for a candidate who was in favor of forcing most of the undocumented population to leave the
country. The same poll also demonstrated the damage inflicted to the GOP brand image by
Republicans’ tone on immigration. Only 23% of Bendixen poll respondents trusted
congressional Republicans to “do the right thing on the immigration issue,” while 60% did not
trust the Republicans. Comparatively, by a 69‐17% margin, poll respondents trusted Democrats
in Congress to do the right thing on immigration and they trusted President Obama on the issue
by an 83‐10% margin.

Interesting.

Sonia

[Vogon_Glory]

2. All They Need To do Is Register--And Remember To Vote

All Latinos need to do to influence this election (And the following ones) is to register to vote and then vote early or on Election Day. That's all any of us need to do. Even now if enough of the good guys registered to vote--and then voted, the Republicans would be wondering what sort of tidal wave overwhelmed them and put an stop to Bush--Perry-style state government.

:dem:

[sonias]

3. I wish it were that simple

It's the motivation that's lacking. The Latino base in Texas has not been energized by this election. At least the primary in the contested Presidential race of 2008 was exciting enough to get more of them out. We had a really good spike that year.

I don't see it yet this year. I really, really wish it happens. The regular voters will come out. The ones that always vote in the primary because that's where most of the race happens in the Democratic strongholds in the Valley and other border areas. But by November, the number of voters in those areas drops off.

Sonia