Frank X. Moraga
By Frank X. Moraga / Amigos805
Mid-term elections are usually pretty dull affairs compared to national presidential campaigns. Most voters tend to believe that it’s politics as usual, their vote will really not make a difference and they would rather save their energy and head to the polls at the end of the presidential campaign.
But given the heated debate during the past couple of years over who started the economic downturn, who is trying to fix the economic downtown, health care and immigration reform — this might be the time for folks to really take mid-term elections seriously, especially Latinos since many of the above issues affect them directly in the pocketbook.
However, a report by the Pew Hispanic Center this week indicates that only about one-third of Latino registered voters (32 percent) have given this year’s election “quite a lot” of thought, compared to 50 percent of all voters.
When it comes to actually going to the polls, 51 percent of Latino registered voters said they are absolutely certain they will vote this year, compared to 70 percent of all registered voters.
The Pew report also found that 65 percent of Latino registered voters say they plan to support the Democratic candidate in their local congressional district, while 22 percent will support the Republican candidate. However, that overwhelming support for Democratic candidates won’t translate to wins if Latinos decided for the most part to just stay home.
Now more than ever that refrain is true: If you don’t vote, don’t complain about the government you get. No matter which party you support, Democratic, Republican, Tea Party, whatever, Latinos in America need to take some time out of their busy day in November, go to their local polling place and support the candidate of their choice.
Otherwise, like anything else in life — you get what you pay for.
— Frank X. Moraga has previously worked with such publications as the Ventura County Star, the Oxnard Press-Courier, the Los Angeles Daily News and the Orange County Register. The views expressed by Frank X. Moraga do not necessarily represent the views of Amigos805.com