Why Latinos Must Vote in 2014

on in Civic Engagement

CMDC_latinovotepanel_560x292If Latinos don’t vote, we will never win the respect of either major political party. This was the message sent today at a panel discussion held at NCLR Headquarters.

The event, “Latinos and the 2014 Elections,” offered a look at what issues the Latino community is most concerned with as we head into the midterm elections, as well where Latinos have the potential to truly influence election outcomes.

While immigration is an important issue for Latino voters, it is not the top priority for many of the folks we hear from on the ground, said NCLR’s immigration and civic engagement director, Clarissa Martinez de Castro.

Still, when it comes to motivation for voting, immigration is consistently cited. According to de Castro, for many Latino voters, the level of inaction on immigration has left some unconvinced about voting. The president’s recent decision to delay executive action immigration has also been a factor.

Yet, we will not let these challenges keep us from getting Latinos to the polls. We are fully engaged in registering as many Latinos as we can to vote in November. As Murguia noted, only 31 percent of eligible Latinos voted in 2010, despite the fact that our voting power has doubled since 2006. We Latinos have the power to change our circumstances with our votes.

Other highlights from today’s panel included a presentation from Latino Decision’s Matt Barreto, who provided insight into the makeup of the Latino vote and where it could be influential in 2014.

Listen to the entire discussion:
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Finally, if you’re not registered to vote yet, go here: nclr.us/register or use our tool below:

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