Latino Voters Support Obama for President Over McCain by 66% to 23% Margin, According to Pew Hispanic Center

(courtesy of the Pew Hispanic Center) - Hispanic registered voters support Democrat Barack Obama for president over Republican John McCain by 66% to 23%, according to a nationwide survey of 2,015 Latinos conducted by the Pew Hispanic Center, a project of the Pew Research Center, from June 9 through July 13, 2008.

The presumptive Democratic nominee's strong showing in this survey represents a sharp reversal in his fortunes from the primaries, when Obama lost the Latino vote to Hillary Rodham Clinton by a nearly two-to-one ratio, giving rise to speculation in some quarters that Hispanics were disinclined to vote for a black candidate.

But in this new survey, three times as many respondents said being black would help Obama (32%) with Latino voters than said it would hurt him (11%); the majority (53%) said his race would make no difference to Latino voters.

Obama is rated favorably by 76% of Latino registered voters, making him much more popular among that voting group than McCain (44% favorable) and President Bush (27% favorable). Hillary Clinton's ratings among Latino registered voters are 73% favorable and 24% unfavorable; Obama's are 76% favorable and 17% unfavorable.

Also, more than three-quarters of Latinos who reported that they voted for Clinton in the primaries now say they are inclined to vote for Obama in the fall election, while just 8% say they are inclined to vote for McCain. That means that Obama is doing better among Hispanics who supported Clinton than he is among non-Hispanic white Clinton supporters, 70% of whom now say they have transferred their allegiance to Obama while 18% say they plan to vote for McCain, according to a recent survey by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press.

Latino registered voters rank education, the cost of living, jobs and health care as the most important issues in the fall campaign, with crime lagging a bit behind those four and the war in Iraq and immigration still farther behind. On each of these seven issues, Obama is strongly favored over McCain--by lopsided ratios ranging from about three-to-one on education, jobs, health care, the cost of living and immigration, to about two-to-one on Iraq and crime.

In addition to their strong support for Obama, Latino voters have moved sharply into the Democratic camp in the past two years, reversing a pro-GOP tide that had been evident among Latinos earlier in the decade. Some 65% of Latino registered voters now say they identify with or lean toward the Democratic Party, compared with just 26% who identify with or lean toward the GOP. This 39 percentage point Democratic Party identification edge is larger than it has been at any time this decade; as recently as 2006, the partisan gap was just 21 percentage points.

Obama Hispanic Leadership Council Announces Fundraising Page

The Obama Hispanic Leadership Council is pleased to announce that they have a live fundraising page on the Obama website where money can be donated that will go toward our $10 million Latino fundraising goal. Click here to donate.

Obama Speaks to Latino Voters at the National Council of La Raza (NCLR)

The Latino vote promises to be vital in November's presidential election. This past Sunday, Barack Obama spoke in San Diego to the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), a leading Hispanic advocacy group. Listen to Obama's speech by clicking here.

Barack Obama Speaks at The League Of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) National Conference

TRANSCRIPTION:

...I’m told that today’s theme is “diversity in government.” So I’ve been thinking about why that’s important and about what it means to have a government that represents all Americans. It’s not just about making sure that men and women of every race, religion, and background are represented at every level of government – though that’s a critical part of it.

It’s not just about sending a message to our children that everyone can lead and everyone can serve – although that too is important. It’s about making sure that we have a government that knows that a problem facing any American is a problem facing all Americans.

It’s about making sure our government knows that when there’s a Hispanic girl stuck in a crumbling school who graduates without learning to read or doesn’t graduate at all, that isn’t just a Hispanic-American problem, that’s an American problem.



When Hispanics lose their jobs faster than almost anybody else, or work jobs that pay less, and come with fewer benefits than almost anybody else, that isn’t a Hispanic-American problem, that’s an American problem.

When 12 million people live in hiding in this country and hundreds of thousands of people cross our borders illegally each year; when companies hire undocumented workers instead of legal citizens to avoid paying overtime or to avoid a union; and a nursing mother is torn away from her baby by an immigration raid, that is a problem that all of us – black, white, and brown – must solve as one nation.

A government that works for all Americans – that’s the kind of government I’m talking about. And that’s the kind of government I’ve been fighting to build throughout my over 20 years in public service.

YOUR "LATIN SWING" VOTE MATTERS

The "Latin Swing" vote will play a critical role in hotly-contested Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Florida - each of these states has a population ranging from 20% - 40% Hispanic. We can play a historic role in bringing a Democrat back to the White House.

Latinos For Obama is now recruiting volunteer Regional Field Directors to help mobilize the Latino vote on behalf of Barack Obama in all 50 states. Interested candidates should send a brief email to Josh Norek and include their city/state, educational/professional background and how they can potentially assist the campaign - josh.norek@latinosforobama.com

Wear Your Heart (and Obama) On Your Sleeve...

Show your support for Barack Obama and let the raza know it. Latinos For Obama stickers and pins are now available at the BarackObama.com store.

Rumor has it that you can pick up 50 stickers for just five bucks - now that's the kind of oferta we love! Click here for Barack Obama pins and stickers.

Watch McCain Flip-Flop on Immigration policy