POLITICS: Who Is the Latino Voter?

CLAS Senior Scholar Maria Echaveste performs a close analysis of the 2006 election results and what they reveal about Latino voters.

Republicans fanned the flames of fear over national security and terrorism to hold onto power in the 2002 and 2004 elections, framing the debate in terms of who would keep the nation safer: Republicans or Democrats. Issues like health care, the economy, and education got pushed aside by the strength of the White House message machine even in the 2004 election when serious questions concerning the war in Iraq were gaining traction.