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Would Richardson get the Latino vote?

Bill Richardson, despite having an Anglo name, is half-Mexican—and proud of it.

The two-time and very popular governor of New Mexico, one of the border states, he has an impressive résumé: he has been the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and secretary of energy under Bill Clinton. These prestigious positions were preceded by 14 years in Congress, where he focused on foreign relations, and a job in the State Department.

I am an unabashed admirer of Richardson; I believe he is an intelligent and well-meaning politician who has a very impressive track record. Indeed, I think his track record is more impressive than those of any of the other candidates running for the Democratic presidential nomination, but I also know that he lacks the "star quality" of Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.

But then I read about how every candidate, Republican, Democrat, independent, is clamoring for the Latino vote. They campaign in Latino-dense communities, they produce ad campaigns in Spanish, and even throw around some Spanish during some public appearances. Surely every single major presidential primary campaign right now has at least one staff person completely dedicated to increasing the candidate’s appeal in the American Latino community. As the fastest-growing ethnic minority in the country, the Latino vote is one everyone wants.

As a result, I am necessarily led to wonder if Bill Richardson, as a Latino himself, will have an edge in garnering the Latino vote, in driving Latinos who otherwise wouldn’t vote to the polls.

I don’t have the answer, but I would like to use this forum as a means discuss this. What do you think? Do you think that Richardson, in lacking the front-runner status that Clinton and Obama have, would be better poised to be the vice-presidential nominee?

Posted on:Friday, April 13, 2007by: daniela
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« Reply By: daniela

I'm still looking forward to answers from others. Please comment here!

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