US immigration reform vital to Latino voters says report
February 09 2010 by Liam Clifford
A report by America’s Voice, a supporter of comprehensive US immigration reform, says that the issue is a defining one for Latino voters.
The report says that
the progress, or lack of progress, on the reform bill could affect as many as 40
congressional races in areas with high numbers of Latino
residents.
Eliseo Medina of the Service Employees International Union
says, “US Immigration reform is a litmus test in the Latino community.” Speaking
during a conference about the study, she added, “to us, this is a policy issue,
but it is also an issue about respect.''
Between 2000 and 2008, the
Democratic party and Obama’s campaign benefitted from a 54 per cent increase in
registered Latino voters off the back of pledges to revamp immigration law.
Obama then won 75 per cent of the Latino vote in the presidential
elections.
Most Latino immigrants living in the US want to see a path to
citizenship introduced for people who moved to the US illegally but have been
living in the country for several years. Many such people have children in
school or have had children who are themselves US citizens, they feel that immigration reform in the US needs to happen this year.
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