Demonstrating the Power of the Latino Vote, Meg Whitman Sings a New Tune in Spanish

America's Voice Blog

Posted 06/18/10 at 01:46pm

After surviving a brutal primary campaign against Steve Poizner that featured plenty of anti-immigration tough-talk and shameless demagoguery on immigration issues, California Republican gubernatorial nominee Meg Whitman is now trying to sing a different immigration tune – at least en Español.

Anticipating the increased importance of the Latino vote in the general election relative to the Republican primary, Whitman advisors told the New York Times at the conclusion of the primary that, in the general election, she “would move away from immigration to broaden her appeal.” Comprising over 21% of the electorate in 2008, the power of California Latino voters is undeniable. And Whitman’s positioning among Latinos – because of the way immigration played in the primary – is untenable. As Allan Hoffenblum, a Republican strategist in Los Angeles, recently said of the way Latinos perceive the GOP on immigration, “This issue is killing the Republican Party” and, regarding the way Whitman and Poizner talked about immigration in the primary, he added, “This is bringing back all the fears that the Republican Party is a white man’s party.”

As a result, yesterday the Whitman campaign released two Spanish-language ads targeting the Latino electorate. As the Los Angeles Times reported:

One of the ads highlights Whitman's opposition to a controversial Arizona law that compels police to check the immigration status of those stopped on suspicion of a crime. It also says Whitman opposed Proposition 187, the 1994 California ballot measure that would have denied taxpayer-funded services to illegal immigrants. The other focuses on jobs and the economy.

The reference to Proposition 187 is especially notable due to the continued presence of former Gov. Wilson in the Whitman campaign and Wilson’s starring role as a validator of Whitman’s “tough on immigration” stance in advertisements during the primary season. The Whitman campaign also unveiled a Latino-focused component of their campaign website, with information on Whitman’s support for the Latino community and stance on key issues to Latinos.”

These statements are in sharp contrast to her recent talk on immigration – at least in English. Though Whitman expressed opposition to the Arizona SB1070 law, she was careful to couch her opposition to the law as unnecessary, due to her having a tougher plan than Arizona. During her Republican primary against Poizner, Meg Whitman talked tough on immigration, saying, “Let me be very clear: I am 100 percent against amnesty, no exceptions. The truth is: we have not secured the border in any shape, form, or manner. My view is until we actually do secure the border and actually stop illegal immigration, we can't talk about any other solutions, and I am 100 percent against amnesty." Whitman ran an ad promising "to secure our border with absolutely no amnesty," as part of her effort to "save California," and in another ad, she promised to be “tough as nails” against illegal immigration. And, as noted, Whitman even named former Governor Pete Wilson, of Proposition 187 infamy and a continued toxic name among Latino voters in California, as her campaign chairman.

It remains to be seen whether Whitman will similarly adjust her English-language rhetoric regarding immigration or, as Dan Newman from the organization Level the Playing Field 2010 told the Los Angeles Times, if the general election will continue to feature "Meg Whitman vs. Meg Whitman — which version are we to believe?" on immigration issues.

Read Up on the Role of Immigration in the California Gubernatorial Race with this America’s Voice Backgrounder.