Concerns rise that Clinton, Democrats are squandering Latino vote

(Image credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

published 19 September 2016

With Donald Trump as her opponent, Hillary Clinton presumably should be doing well among Latino voters. And she is, but it is "less clear whether these voters will turn out in numbers that Democrats are counting on to win," The Washington Post reports after speaking with several Latino political strategists and activists. "We're not seeing the Democratic Party take advantage of this moment in time, really looking to leverage more engagement in a more strategic way with our community," Janet Murguia, president of the National Council of La Raza, tells the Post.

The specific criticisms of Clinton's campaign include that it has so far spent most of its efforts trying to reach Latino millennials through social media, using English-language ads, rather than running Spanish-language ads in crucial swing-stage markets, as President Obama did four years ago. "This approach may end up being vindicated on Election Day," veteran strategist Fernand Amandi, who led Obama's Hispanic vote in media outreach in 2012, tells the Post. "I just find it to be more risky than replicating what we know worked, which is the sustained approach that the Obama campaign put in place." You can read more about Clinton's reputed Latino problems, and the larger critique of Democratic outreach, at The Washington Post.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.

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