According to vice president Lydia Camarillo, Hispanics make up at least 12 percent of the U.S. population, and they continue to grow in record numbers. The Hispanic electorate grows by 28 to 30 percent every presidential election cycle. "Because we're larger in actual numbers, we're also casting out votes in larger numbers," says Camarillo. 

Camarillo places a special value on the Latina voter in this effort. "The Latina vote is critical," she says. Latinas are two or three points more likely to vote than Hispanic men, and they have a particularly important influence - the Latina voter tends to bring her family with her to the polls. 
"When she votes, five or six people vote," says Camarillo. "She brings her children and her spouse and her parents to vote, so we're asking Latinas to ... bring their families to the polls. They do that, and Latinas decide the future of this next presidential election."

THE LATINAS

Both the Democratic and Republican presidential campaigns boast a dedicated base of Hispanic employees and spokespersons. Among the more influential are Kerry-Edwards spokeswoman Aida Alvarez, the former administrator of the Small Business Association under President Clinton; and Rosario Marin, who came to know President Bush during her tenure as U.S. Treasurer in his administration.

Alvarez became familiar with Kerry's work in the U.S. Senate for small business development while she was at the SBA. "Having worked with him over the course of four years, I [have] seen first hand his extraordinary leadership," says Alvarez. 
Says Marin, the first immigrant to hold the position of U.S. Treasurer, "No one can deny [the President's] record of service and achievement with our community. … He is a leader that does what he says and says what he does. We can trust him."

THE ISSUES

Camarillo names four issues as crucial to the Latino voter: jobs, education, immigration and the war. "Jobs and education are really the value of what America promises - opportunities," says Camarillo. "And immigration and the war are the values of how we choose to be governed. Are we truly as a community being honored and respected? Are we truly welcome? … It's not enough that they're talking to us in Spanish." 

 

Former SBA Administrator Aida Alvarez Spokeswoman for the Kerry-Edwards campaign

According to Camarillo, though education is important to Latino voters, it is not the pivotal election issue this year. "It's not the issue that will drive them to the polls," she says. "War and immigration - those are the two wedging issues that will drive people to the polls."  NOVEMBER 2004 It often seems as though presidential candidates do not realize the potential power of the Latino electorate. "I think both the Bush campaign and the Kerry campaign have a long way to go to really cover Latino and Latina issues in their platforms and in their discussions," says Camarillo. The campaigns, of course, feel differently. "Latinos are family to President Bush," asserts Marin. "His policies have benefited the Hispanic community in ways not seen at any other time in the history of our nation." She adds, on a more personal note, that "I am forever grateful and humbled by his trust in me and by his belief that, as an immigrant, I represent the very essence of America - the land of hope and opportunity."

But Alvarez counters, "George W. Bush made a lot of promises in both Spanish and English to the Hispanic community, but it takes more than a few lines in Spanish to address our needs. In fact, Bush's policies have hurt Hispanic families, and Hispanic families have paid attention. John Kerry will put our country back on track."

There will always be disagreement; there is also always room for improvement. "In general I think both parties and both campaigns need to be more assertive about pushing issues that matter to Latinos," says Camarillo. "Neither party should take the Latino vote and electorate for granted."

 

Latina Candidates for U.S. Congress The following is a list of Latina candidates for U.S. Congress, supplied by the National Republican Congressional Committee and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Unfortunately, no Latinas remain in the race for seats in the U.S. Senate. SVREP vice president Lydia Camarillo is determinedly optimistic, though. "I see in the net five years a Latina running for U.S. Senate and winning," she says.  House of Representatives: Becky Armendariz-Klein (R-Texas) Claudia Bermudez (R-Calif.) Alexandria Coronado (R-Calif.) Arlette Molina (R-Texas) Grace Napolitano* (D-Calif.) Maria Parra (D-Ind.)  Ileana Ros-Lehtinen* (R-Fla.) Lucille Roybal-Allard* (D-Calif.) Linda Sanchez* (D-Calif.) Loretta Sanchez* (D-Calif.) Hilda Solis* (D-Calif.) Amy Vasquez (D-N.J.) Tracy Velasquez (D-Mo.) Nydia Velázquez* (D-N.Y.) *Incumbents LATINA Style has compiled this list to the best of our ability and knowledge but cannot guarantee that the list is complete or up-to-date at the time of publication. This list does not imply endorsement of any of the above candidates by LATINA Style.

 

Online Political Resources and Campaign Sites: Presidential: GeorgeBush.com & GeorgeBush.com/hispanics JohnKerry.com & JohnKerry.com/unidos Congressional: dscc.org (Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee) nrcc.org (National Republican Congressional Committee) dccc.org (Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee) rnha.org (Republican National Hispanic Assembly) rodriguez.house.gov/chc (Congressional Hispanic Caucus) chci.org (Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute) Committees: rnc.org (Republican National Committee) dnc.org (Democratic National Committee) Voter Mobilization: DeclareYourself.com (Declare Yourself) RockTheVote.com (Rock The Vote) svrep.org (Southwest Voter Representation Education Project) Online Voter Registration: fec.gov/votregis/vr.htm (Federal Election Commission) https://secure5.ctsg.com/rtv/ovr (Rock the Vote) votenet.com/electionimpact (Election Impact) LATINA Style does not in any way endorse the websites on this list, nor do we claim the list to be exhaustive of available online resources. Some systems may require that "www." be added before some or all of the above web addresses.

 

EDUCATION RM: "The No Child Left Behind Law is providing an environment where parents have more choices and more control of their children's education and where kids are really learning." THE ECONOMY & BUSINESS RM: "Because of the president's economic plan, Latino small business owners have prospered and more Hispanic working families have been able to keep more of their hard-earned money. Today, the unemployment rate of Latinos is nearly three points lower than in 1996." TERROR & THE WAR RM: "President Bush believes that the best defense against terrorist attacks in our soil is a strong offense. He will take a no-risk approach when protecting our nation and our families from those who hate us and our way of life." EDUCATION AA: "When John Kerry promises to fully fund education, he is ensuring a future of opportunity for our children. When John Kerry stood with Latino leaders in Massachusetts to protect bilingual education, he was striving to give our children the tools they need for a better future." THE ECONOMY & BUSINESS AA: "John Kerry challenged me and the SBA to increase our lending to minority and women-owned businesses. We doubled and tripled those numbers, respectively." IMMIGRATION AA: "John Kerry promises that during his first 100 days as president he will present a plan to reform our failing immigration policies. … John Kerry supports immigration policies that allow for family reunification, that provide workers' visas with labor protection, and that protect our borders in ways that are effective and just."