|
 |
|
|
|
Este informe no está disponible en español. THE MIAMI HERALDBush, Gore Reach Out To Hispanic Voters, Candidates Try Various Venuesby STEVEN THOMMA AND MARY ANNE OSTROMJuly 24, 2000 WASHINGTON -- Vice President Al Gore's campaign staffers were surfing through Texas Gov. George W. Bush's political website when they discovered, to their delight, that Bush's Spanish-language Web pages were empty, bare, devoid of text. ``Bush's vision for Hispanic Americans,'' gloated a Gore spokesman, ``is nothing more than blank pages.'' Such is the hunger for Hispanic voters that a computer glitch this month has the makings of a campaign issue. When it comes to luring Hispanic voters, the Bush and Gore camps are using every venue and medium in a bilingual, cross-cultural appeal so blatant that the 2000 campaign might be the first in history with subtitles. COURTING VOTERS According to a comprehensive Knight Ridder poll of likely Hispanic voters, the candidates have little to lose and much to gain by aggressively courting Hispanic voters with Spanish speeches, Spanish ads or even the tempting prospect of a Hispanic running mate. More than a third of the voters polled said they would be more likely to vote for a candidate if he advertised in Spanish, had Hispanic ancestry or spoke Spanish. Nearly 50 percent said they would be more likely to vote for candidates who promised to appoint Hispanics to high-level posts or, better yet, simply campaigned in Hispanic neighborhoods or at Hispanic events. ``I commend that,'' Elena Pardo, 19, a college student in New York, said of efforts by candidates to communicate in Spanish. ``I know George Bush is a fluent Spanish-speaker. I think that's important.'' In fact, both candidates speak Spanish -- Gore with a more formal syntax and Bush with a more colloquial Texas style. And both candidates can benefit from it, according to Adela de la Torre, director of the Mexican-American Studies and Research Center at the University of Arizona. ``When you think of the Latino or Hispanic cultural identity, the two elements are language and religion,'' she said. ``Speaking Spanish is important symbolically.'' When face-to-face politicking is not practical, the candidates use their family connections -- real or concocted. Bush is dispatching his Mexican-American nephew, George P. Bush, on his own nationwide tour. Caught without any Hispanics in his family, Gore responds by noting that his first grandchild was born on the Fourth of July but that he hopes a second would be born on Cinco de Mayo, a Mexican holiday. And while some voters conceded that such tactics are simply pandering, the poll showed there was little downside for the candidates. Less than 5 percent said they would be less likely to vote for a candidate who engaged in such efforts. ``I cannot stress communication enough,'' said Josephine Flores, 24, a Dallas Democrat who says she is undecided on a presidential candidate. ``If you want people's votes, but you won't come out and meet them, no way.'' VOTERS' CHOICE While 49 percent said they would be more likely to vote for a candidate who campaigned in their neighborhoods or events, 29 percent said they were ``a lot more likely'' to vote for such a candidate. Forty-six percent said it made no difference. ``Latinos and Hispanics are like the rest of America,'' said R. Michael Alvarez, a political scientist at the California Institute of Technology who reviewed the poll results for Knight Ridder. ``They want candidates to talk to them and address their concerns. They don't want candidates blatantly pandering to them. They see efforts to speak halting Spanish and come into the community and eat tamales as a pandering device. They'd rather have candidates come and really talk to them.'' The ultimate gesture toward Hispanics would have been naming a Hispanic running mate, but no one is seriously in contention in either party. Democrats at one point had mentioned Energy Secretary Bill Richardson, a Mexican American and former congressman from New Mexico, as a possible vice president for Gore. But Richardson's stock fell during investigations over poor security at Energy Department nuclear labs. RUNNING MATE According to the Knight Ridder poll, Bush would have benefited more than Gore from a Hispanic running mate. The poll found that Gore led Bush by 50 to 34 percentage points among Hispanics. About one-quarter of the Hispanic Democrats backing Gore said they would be ``more likely'' to vote for the Republican candidate if a Hispanic were on the GOP ticket. That would have been enough to give Bush an edge among Hispanic voters. Gore, on the other hand, would gain little by naming a Hispanic running mate. Only 18 percent of Bush's Republican Hispanic supporters said they would be more likely to reconsider their votes. Bush and Gore defend their use of Spanish and their appeal to Hispanic voters as a means of connecting with an influential minority community. "You don't see either candidate speaking Spanish all the time,'' said Gore spokesman Dagoberto Vega. ``It's just a means of showing he cares.'' Bush's aides concede that the Texas governor's appeal to Hispanic voters also will help reinforce his image as a compassionate Republican in the eyes of non-Hispanic voters, who might have tuned out the party when members such as former California Gov. Pete Wilson tried to crack down on undocumented immigrants. ``I like to be seen in neighborhoods where sometimes Republicans aren't seen,'' Bush said recently. ``I like to fight that stereotype that somehow we don't have the corazon [heart] necessary to hear the voices of all political parties.'' Still, to some the symbolism is fleeting. Even a Bush supporter who recently was host to the candidate at his California deli said the much-publicized visit was not necessary. ``They don't have to come and eat tacos to get my vote,'' said José Zepeda, a Mexican-American immigrant who owns three grocery stores in Southern California. ``They just want our vote,'' said Martha Laboy, a teacher's aide in New York. ``After they get our vote, they won't go into the neighborhoods anymore, and they'll stop speaking Spanish.'' Steven Thomma reports from The Herald's Washington Bureau; Mary Anne Ostrom reports for The San Jose Mercury News.
|
