NPR: Latinos May Have Saved Senate For Democrats

[pampango]

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=131100975

Amid of a wave of Republican victories on Tuesday, Democrats may have Hispanic voters to thank for their narrow majority in the Senate. Polls show Latinos' overwhelming support for Democrats made the difference in at least three Senate races in the West.

"I think that if a number of Republican candidates had chosen not to use tactics that demonized immigrants and Latinos or had not fumbled the immigration issue, you could be looking at a Republican Senate right now," says Clarissa Martinez with the National Council of La Raza, one of the sponsors of the Latino Decisions poll.

In Nevada, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid got about 90 percent of the Hispanic vote, according to a poll of likely voters taken right before the election.

It wasn't just in Nevada that Latinos made the difference. According to the bilingual poll conducted by Latino Decisions, Hispanics in California contributed about 10 points to the vote for incumbent Sen. Barbara Boxer, who won by 9 percentage points. And in Colorado, Latinos gave Democrat Michael Bennet a 6-point boost — and he won by a margin of less than 1 percent.

Republicans are in a bad situation, says Gary Segura, a Stanford political science professor and the pollster for Latino Decisions. Despite their huge victory on Tuesday, he says, "they lost in every racial and ethnic group except whites. They haven't in any way broadened their coalition. And the question is — with whites declining as a share of the population, what's the future for them to build a vote base?"

[bullwinkle428]

1. Guess what, Repukes? It's only going to keep getting worse for you.

BWAH-HA-HA-HA-HA!

[madmax]

2. Gracias Amigos

:grouphug:

[jwirr]

3. Unless something drastic happens the balance of power is shifting

and this elections will be the repugs last big win. As for this old white lady - I will gladly vote with them. I am sick of greed and selfishness.

[Scurrilous]

4. K & R

:thumbsup:

[Quixote1818]

5. My BIGGEST Thanks to all the Hispanics who saved our ass in the senate!

You came through, big time! K and R

[southmost]

6. I'm glad for the latino vote helping the west/southwest

but down here in Texas , we didn't enjoy any such luck (and we got plenty of Mexican-american people in the state along with hispanics and latinos)

thing is, most cannot vote and alot do not vote. Like the rest of the U.S, we are being held hostage by a hostile dwindling minority of conservatives who enjoy majority status

for example about 40 % of the registered voters showed up to vote, about 60% vote consistently conservative = 25% of total voters. they dominate and dictate the fate of the other 75% of the voters, (this happened similarily across most of the U.S. and resulted in a GOP takeover)