Source: MediaNews Group via Daily Democrat, Associated Press
California's growing bloc of Latino voters represent a significant possible source of votes in favor of Proposition 8, the November ballot measure that seeks to strip the right to marry from gay and lesbian couples, MediaNews reports.
As a rapidly growing political bloc that could represent nearly one in five voters in November, Latinos offer a major opportunity for the campaign working to pass Proposition 8, MediaNews reporter Mike Swift writes.
A Field Poll conducted in July found that Latinos, with their social conservatism and strong Catholicism, are in favor of a constitutional ban against same-sex marriage.
The same Field Poll found that Latinos favor the marriage restriction 49 percent to 38 percent, while a majority of whites appear poised to vote against Proposition 8 in November.
"This issue is as important or more important to the Latino community than the presidential race," said Frank Schubert, campaign manager for the Yes on 8, Preserve Marriage campaign, which plans to advertise in Spanish, and work through Latino churches this fall.
"It's a real core value for Latinos, there's no question about that."
Whether the Yes on 8 campaign will be able to capitalize is another question, MediaNews reports.
Political observers said the vote could be tied to the presidential election and to the skill and financial muscle behind the campaign's outreach to Latinos. They predict an uphill struggle.
"For those who vote, which is a subset of the Latino community, you're likely to find support for the proposition opposing gay marriage, but those sorts of moral issues do not motivate Latinos to participate," Louis DeSipio, a political scientist at UC Irvine and expert on Latino politics, told MediaNews.
More likely to pull Latinos to the polls are economic or immigration issues, he said.
Another obstacle is that California is unlikely to be a key battleground state in the presidential election, meaning the McCain and Obama camps are less likely to spend money here to get Latinos and other groups to the polls.
"I just don't know if the number of Latino voters will be enough to put it (the gay marriage ban) over the top," said Karthick Ramakrishnan, a professor at UC Riverside who studies immigrant politics.
The failure of immigration reform may cause conservative Latinos to question "the extent to which the Republican Party cares about their issues, beyond just abortion and gay marriage," Ramakrishnan said.
Another wild card, he said, is the degree to which the Catholic Church gets involved in the campaign this fall.
Religious groups, including Catholic groups, have been the most active supporters of the marriage ban.
Jennifer Kerns, spokeswoman for the Yes on 8 campaign, told the Associated Press that about 15,000 backers of the measure knocked on doors and distributed campaign literature to registered voters throughout the state this weekend and last. Most of door knockers were members of Catholic, Mormon, and evangelical Christian churches, she said.
Source: Gay Latinos opposed to same-sex marriage | Daily Democrat (MediaNews)
Gay marriage foes mobilize for ban in California | Associated Press