LatinaLista — Latino voters have long been characterized as loyal supporters or, in some circles, followers, depending on your view of loyalty and Sen. Hillary Clinton’s campaign is counting on the latter here in Texas in her quest to snatch the Democratic nomination away from rival Sen. Barack Obama next week.
An excerpt from “Not Your Madre’s Texas Primary” written for Spot-on.
Clinton is hoping – more likely praying – that Texas Latinos follow the lead of our California and New York primos (cousins) and hand her a majority win over her rival. But her campaign is learning the hard lesson that a win in Texas depends, not on yesterday’s loyalties, but a new reality — the “M” factor.
Voters born between 1980 and 2000 are known as the Millennial Generation. In Texas, 31 percent of Hispanic eligible voters are between the ages of 18 to 29-years-old and these young Latinos are close to being the majority demographic overall among Texas Latino voters.
Latinos, 30-44-years-of-age, the current largest group within Latino voters, outnumber the millenials, but only by a measly .2 percent. Couple these numbers with the fact that Latino voters comprise almost 40 percent of eligible Texas Democratic voters. It’s an implication that deserves attention.
Because in this Democratic primary most young Latino voters are dismissing the political loyalties of their parents and following a path that is relevant to how they view the world.
Unfortunately, the Clinton campaign has missed this, insisting on focusing the majority of their Latino outreach on ethnicity, not age. By contrast, Obama has focused his campaigning on college campuses and urban settings, home to most youth. Clinton has stuck to the tried-and-true style of political politicking — walking the streets of Latino neighborhoods during the day and visiting local taquerias, not likely places or hours for young people to hang out.
If Clinton’s people had been savvy about this age group, then they would have known that the millenials, a group whose lives are seamlessly integrated with technology, are a demographic bred on instant gratification, constant change, team work, and for whom diversity is a way of life.
Continue reading Not Your Madre’s Texas Primary.
Comment(7)
Frank
Anyone curious as to how White Democrats will vote in Texas? Hello, anybody there?
Whites still comprise 50% of Texans while Hispanics comprise around 35%. Even though some of the White population are Republicans, surely there are a lot of White Democrats in Texas.
Carolina Isaacs
What people should understand about this campaign is that they are not only choosing the President of the United States; they are should a world lider, probably the biggest world lider currently in these days. And when they do that, they should take into consideration what is best not only for them, but for the rest of the world, and what the world feels and think about this election. And let me tell you. The world thinks that Hillary Clinton it the better suited candidate. We the world feel that you are risking jeopardizing us all if you choose otherwise. We had think this over and over and we only came to one conclusion every time: Hillary Clinton should be president of the U.S.A. And that is because she is the one who can lead us to face the challenges of global warming, she’s the one who has the thorough knowledge of world politics, and she’s the one with most progressive ideas for the U.S.A. Not choosing her would be a mistake. And we, the rest of the world, request you, the ones who can vote, that please don’t make a mistake who would damage us all.
Jax
Without doubt, the American voters will justifiably vote for the person they believe will best serve the interests of the United States.
Let that be the definitive statement on that subject.
David O.
Frank,
This blog is mostly about Latina/o issues. I’m sure there are a large number of ‘White’ blogs out there for you to utter your peevish complaints.
Dee
It is important we all study the issues and vote for the candidate we believe should become President. This is a very important responsibility for each of us.
Frank
David, it wasn’t really a complaint. On the “White” blogs they discuss the white, black and latino vote. I have read remarks in here about the Hispanic vote and the Black vote but no one seems interested in the “White” vote in here.
Personally, I wish we would stop slicing and dicing ourselves up into ethnic groups and just call ourselves Americans.
EYES OF TEXAS
Latina/o issues are also the same issues that concern American citizens that want something done about illegal immigration and border security. Just because we (white bloggers) do not share your views on these issues does not prevent us from making our opinions known here. We will not be silenced by anyone until our goals are met. I am sure you could find a blog where everyone one agrees with your point of view, but that would be pretty boring, right?
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