The sleeping giant has awoken: Latinos not only helped Obama win in key battleground states, but they made up 10% of the electorate for the first time ever.
Latinos, the fastest growing minority, making up 16% of the nation’s population, made their mark on election night as they voted for President Barack Obama over Republican Mitt Romney 71% to 27%, a lower percentage than Republican candidates have received in in the last three elections.
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“If we don’t do better with Hispanics, we’ll be out of the White House forever,” said Republican strategist and CNN contributor Ana Navarro, who was the national Hispanic co-chair of McCain’s presidential campaign.
Zuania Capó-Ramos of Puerto Rico moved to New York just in time for the 2008 elections, but she didn’t vote until this year.
“I had just come to the U.S. and still did not quite understand how to work the election process in this country. I felt misinformed regarding the difference between political parties,” Capó-Ramos said. “Obama seemed like an excellent candidate, however, it was not until the most recent elections that I became active in American politics and issues affecting the Latino community.”
Pew Hispanic Center’s analysis of exit poll data stated that 77% of Hispanic voters said undocumented immigrants should be offered a chance to apply for legal status, while 18% said such immigrants should be deported. Among all voters, fewer than two thirds (65%) said these immigrants should be offered a chance to apply for legal status, while 28% say they should be deported.
“When Mitt Romney brought on Kris Kobach as his adviser for his campaign, that really made an impact on the Latino community,” said Leo Pierson, a campaign surrogate for the Ohio Latino Leadership Council to Re-Elect President Obama. Pierson started volunteering in March 2011 and provided guidance on Latino affairs and outreach in Ohio for the campaign.
Latinos only make up 3% of the swing state’s population, according to the Pew Hispanic Center, of which Obama received 53% of the Latino vote.
“The GOP drove Latinos away with their anti-Latino agenda in being very vocal on ‘self-deportation’,” said Pierson. “It didn’t help that Mitt Romney said the Arizona immigration law was the model for the nation. That stuff sticks.”
Romney said he only supported the E-verify portion of the controversial Arizona immigration law, also known as SB 1070. After he made that statement, his opponents were able to characterize his support as being for the entire law, and that alienated many Latino voters.
However, Latino voters might have made up their minds in 2011, when Mitt Romney stated he would veto the DREAM Act, but his reluctance during the second presidential debate to provide specifics on an alternative approach on immigration reform could have sealed the deal for most Latinos.