New Report: Immigrant and Latino Voters Could Prove Decisive in the 2008 Election
Analysis Examines turnout projections,
implications for battleground states, and importance of immigration reform as a
threshold issue
Accompanying video encourages these voters to make their voices
heard in November
Washington,
DC - Today, America's Voice released a new paper, "The Power of the Immigrant
and Latino Vote in the 2008 Election." The group's analysis highlights
the impact Latino voters are likely to have on the Presidential election and
key House and Senate races in 2008.
While Latinos care about a number of issues, recent polling indicates that a
candidate's stance on immigration reform remains a defining issue for
many. As the immigration debate has heated up these last few years, it
has become not just a matter of how many visas we give out, but whether Latino
workers and families are respected for their contributions and given an equal
shot at the American Dream.
"Our analysis shows that Latino and immigrant electorate is growing, is highly
mobilized, and is strongly influenced by the immigration debate," said Frank
Sharry, Executive Director of America's Voice. "In fact, during the
run up to the election, with its 24/7 focus on white working class voters, this
may turn out to the greatest story never told. Clearly, both campaigns
get how important these voters are, and how important immigration is as an
issue. This is why they are slugging it out in Spanish language ad wars
in Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, and Florida over which candidate is more
strongly in favor or comprehensive immigration reform."
In addition, the paper compares recent polling and projections with an analysis
of how the Latino vote influenced the election of 2000 and 2004.
According to Sharry, "in 2004, Latino voters, especially Latino immigrant
voters, helped President Bush get re-elected. Bush won 48% of the
Spanish-dominant vote, which pushed his overall Latino support from 35% in 2000
up to 40% in 2004. This swing towards Bush, which was aided by his strong
support for comprehensive immigration reform, helped him win Florida and the
southwestern states. The question this year is which way these voters
will break."
Recent polling indicates that Senator Barack Obama has a significant lead over
Senator John McCain at this stage. But with three weeks remaining in the
campaign, and a sizable number of undecided Latino and immigrant voters, only
the final results will tell the story.
Along with the paper, America's Voice also released an accompanying video that
speaks to the power of the Latino vote this election. Mentioning numbers
of 9.5 million Latino voters expected to turn out in November, the video
criticizes attempts to silence these voices through voter suppression
tactics. To view the entire analysis and the video go to http://www.americasvoiceonline.org/page/content/powerofthevote.
As the Washington Post recently reported, voter
registrations amongst immigrants and Latinos are growing significantly.
And the Politico noted that several groups are working on turning out the Latino vote. Furthermore,
surveys of Asian
Americans are showing that it is not just Latino immigrants that are
becoming engaged in the electoral process.
"Latino and immigrant voters have arrived," "said Sharry. "These voters have a
real stake in this country, and their votes will matter in November.
America's Voice -- Harnessing the power of American voices and American values to win common sense immigration reform.
Silent No More
Marxavi Angel Martinez came to America at the age of 3 with her parents. The family came to the U.S. on valid visas but stayed in America after establishing a good life for their family. Angel has never known a life outside of the United States. Read More
