Sen. John Kerry barely squeaked out a victory in Wisconsin during the 2004 presidential election, with just 11,400 more votes than President George Bush. So it’s no wonder that community organizers are working to register the tens of thousands of Latino voters in Wisconsin who are eligible to vote but don’t show up at the polls.
“Weare working to turn that around,” said Christine Neumann-Ortiz,founding executive director of the immigrants’ rights group Voces dela Frontera.
Milwaukee-and Racine-based Voces de la Frontera has already signed up more than1,500 new voters this year, and increased Latino voter turnout in 2006by 32%. Waukesha based La Casa de Esperanza has registered more than130 people with a goal of 400 in its third voter registration drive.The Urban League of Racine and Kenosha and the League of United LatinAmerican Citizens (LULAC) are registering Latino voters in Kenosha.
Neumann-Ortiz said the biggest barriers for Latino voters are language and voter education. Voces, along with the ACLU of Wisconsin,advocated for Spanish-language bilingual ballot instructions and voterinformation at the polls in wards that have more than 40%Spanish-speaking voters. The new Spanish and English ballots, createdby the city and state election commissions, launched in the Februaryprimary election.
Vocesis also providing information about the candidates’ policies and otherballot initiatives for Spanish speakers, along with tips on how to fillout a ballot and where to vote. Voces has also developed a politicalarm this year, Voces de la Frontera Action, which allows theorganization to endorse candidates and become involved in lobbying.But its voter registration drive and education are conducted by itsnonpolitical entity.
Reaching Out to Latino Voters
BothDemocratic nominee Barack Obama and Republican nominee John McCain arereaching out to Latino voters, with personal appearances and paid ads.Both candidates spoke at national conventions of LULAC and La Raza toconfirm their commitment to causes that are important to Latinos.
Bothcandidates have Spanish-language ads with messages tailored to Latinovoters. Obama’s ads stress his biography as a self-made man who workedhis way through college, the son of a single mother and an immigrantfather, as well as his advocacy for job-training programs, immigrationreform and veterans.
Obama and the Democratic National Committee also announced a $20 million campaign to target Latino voters, especially those in Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada and Florida. Phil Walzak, communications director for Obama in Wisconsin, said that a portion of that would be spent in Wisconsin on a variety of outreach efforts.
Walzaksaid that Obama’s tax policiescutting taxes for middle-class andworking-class families, providing a tax rebate from the wind fall taxon oil companies and eliminating taxes for seniors making less than$50,000would appeal to Latino voters.
“The issues that willappeal to Latino voters are the same issues that will appeal to allvoters, and those are pocketbook issues,” Walzak said. The ads fromObama’s challenger, Republican McCain, emphasize his respect for Latinomembers of the military, his economic plan and Obama’s recent tripoverseas, which did not include any stops in Latin America.
HessyFernandez, spokeswoman for McCain’s campaign, said that McCain’s advocacy for immigration reform and efforts to cut taxes for small businessowners would win over Latino voters.
“John McCain doesn’t needan introduction to the Hispanic community, as Barack Obama needs,”Fernandez said. “John McCain has been working for more than two decadesfor the values, positions and issues the Latino community cares about.”
Questions About Immigration Reform
DespiteMcCain’s long history on immigration reform, Obama has a 3-to-1 leadover McCain among Latino voters, with 66% support to McCain’s 23%,according to a July Pew Hispanic Center survey. By comparison, Bush wonabout 40% of Latino voters in the 2004 election.
McCain’s low support among Latino voters nationwide is in stark contrast to his record in Arizona,where he won two-thirds of the Latino vote in 2004. But that was beforethe Republican Party made immigration reform a hot-button issue for itsbase, requiring McCain to balance the competing interests of the antiimmigration Republican base with his Latino supporters.
Althoughthe media, when dealing with Latino issues, primarily focus onimmigration reform, the Pew survey shows that Latino vot ers are moreconcerned about education, the cost of living, jobs, health care, crimeand the war in Iraq.“For the Latino community, well, I think for everyone in general, themain concern is the economy, which affects everything,” said AnselmoVillareal, executive director of La Casa de Esperanza. “Plus the priceof gas, the war in Iraqbut mostly the economy.”
Yeta Pew Research Center survey conduct ed last fall found thatimmigration was the third-most important issue for Republican voters,behind the Iraq war and terrorism.
Andthe Republican base favors a more puni tive, law-enforcement approachthan the more moderate wing of the Republican Party and Democrats,adding complexity to McCain’s overtures to Latino voters.
Neumann-Ortizsaid that she was pleased that McCain became his party’s candidate,since the other Republican contenders had run highly anti-immigrantcampaigns. But she said that McCain had “basically changed hisposition” and had become more conservative on immigration to win theRepublican nomi nation, while Obama’s position was more consistent.
“Now[McCain] supports enforcement first and then he’ll get to legalization[of undocu mented workers],” she said. “Obama recog nizes that we needa comprehensive approach and that we should create legal avenues forstudents and families of workers.”
Voces de la Frontera’s nextvoter registra tion drive will be held on Saturday, Aug. 16. To getinvolved, call 643-1620 in Milwaukee or 262-619-4183 in Racine, or goto www.vdlf.org.
What’s your take? Write: editor@shepex.com or comment on this story online at www.expressmilwaukee.com.
Voter Drive | Photo by Dave Moore of Voces de la Frontera
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