Democratic candidates adjust efforts to draw Hispanic vote

[Judi Lynn]

Feb. 1, 2004, 10:32PM

Democratic candidates adjust efforts to draw Hispanic vote
By BENNETT ROTH
Copyright 2004 Houston Chronicle


ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Some of the Democratic presidential candidates have been brushing up on their high school Spanish, and mariachi bands have replaced rock as the warm-up music at certain campaign rallies.

The reason is that the seven states voting on Democratic presidential candidates Tuesday include New Mexico, where Hispanics make up more than 40 percent of the population, and Arizona, where they are a quarter of all residents.

Democratic officials say the inclusion of these Southwestern states in the early primaries is forcing the candidates, none of whom comes from a state where Hispanics are a major political factor, to pay attention to the nation's fastest-growing ethnic group. (snip)

"For the first time, the nation will get to see what the Hispanic vote is like and whom they prefer," said Joni Gutierrez, chairwoman of the New Mexico Democratic Party.
(snip)

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/nation/2382683

On edit:

From the L.A.Times:

(snip) February 2, 2004

Candidates Face First Test Among Latinos
Democrats reach out to a key voting bloc for contests in Arizona and New Mexico on Tuesday.

By John M. Glionna, Times Staff Writer


CASA GRANDE, Ariz. — For Chris Hernandez Jr., Wesley K. Clark is known simply as "the Boss." For three perilous years in the late 1990s, Hernandez worked as Clark's bodyguard when the now-retired Army general served as NATO commander during the war in the Balkans.

Hernandez's job was to watch the back of the four-star general he considers a personal hero. At home in Arizona, little has changed in the arrangement. As Clark — now a Democratic presidential candidate — campaigns for votes in Tuesday's Arizona primary and the New Mexico caucus, Hernandez is a critical player in efforts to win the backing of fellow Latino war veterans. (snip)

The Arizona and New Mexico contests — two of seven in the Democratic race on Tuesday — represent the first tests among the candidates for the increasingly crucial Latino vote. All of those who have campaigned here — including Clark, Kerry, Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut and former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean — have run Spanish-language ads and have made their campaign websites available in Spanish.

They have sought the endorsements of popular Latino politicians and community leaders and conducted tours of the border. Several of the contenders are to appear tonight at a forum in Phoenix sponsored in part by Latino groups. And Dean and Kerry have briefly dusted off their schoolboy Spanish while addressing audiences on immigration reform and improving healthcare for the poor.

The reason: The Latino voting bloc has grown in both scope and significance across the Southwest. With extensive coverage of the campaign by Spanish-language media, a good showing in Arizona and New Mexico could help candidates attract Latino votes in California, one of a bloc of states with primaries on March 2.
(snip)

http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/2004/la-na-arizona2feb02,1,5420081.story?coll=la-home-headlines
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[Leilani]

1. Nice Article

Wes Clark's daughter-in-law is a Latina.