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POLITICS
by Dan Perkins
Source:
NALEO Education Fund Release on U.S.
Newswire
As
the dust settles on the 2006 election, political
pundits are attempting to decipher the mood of
the country across its many factions and
regions. Drawing considerable attention
are Hispanic voters and politicians. The
National Association of Latino Elected and
Appointed Officials (NALEO) Education Fund -
a national non-profit, non-partisan organization
that encourages Hispanics to participate fully in
the American political process - has released its
own findings on the fortunes of
Hispanic politicians.
NALEO's analysis reveals
a picture of continuing political progress for
America's emerging Hispanic communities. According to
Arturo Vargas, executive director of NALEO,
the outcomes of the 2006 election are evidence
of Hispanic politicians
ability to attract votes from diverse constituents.
"Latinos serving in top federal and state
positions have the power to address the issues
that are most important to our community, and
all Americans: education, economic opportunity,
and our involvement in the war in Iraq," said
Vargas in a recent release.
The success of
Hispanic politicians, both at the national and
state levels, indicates Hispanic communities are becoming an
increasingly potent political force in America.
Hispanic Elected
Officials in Washington, DC
This fall, voters
expressed their frustrations with "business as
usual" in Washington and ushered in one of the
most dramatic sweeps in more than a decade.
While voters sent many incumbents home, a
respectable number of those that held their
seats or were elected to political
office for the first time were Hispanic
politicians.
Hispanics in the
U.S. Senate
While much of the national media's attention has
focused on the presidential aspirations of
Barach Obama - the only African American
serving in the U.S. Senate, and the first
African American to serve as Senator from the
state of Illinois - Hispanics have quietly
established their presence in the Congress'
most august chamber.
On November 7th,
Robert Menendez (D) won his senatorial bid
and is now preparing to serve his first
full-term as the nation's first Hispanic U.S.
Senator from New Jersey. Menendez will
join two other Hispanic Senators: Florida Senator Mel Martinez (R) and
Colorado Senator Ken Salazar (D). Neither Martinez
or Salazar faced re-election this year.
Hispanics in
the U.S. House of Representatives Starting in
January 2007, the U.S. House of Representatives
will have a total of 23 Hispanic Congressmen who
will represent constituents in eight states.
The total number of Hispanic representatives reflects a net gain
of one Congressional seat.
California,
which has the highest
number of Hispanics representatives in Congress
(7), leads Florida by two. In Texas, a run-off will determine which party will
represent the state's 23 Congressional
District, however the numbers of Hispanics in
Congress will not change
since both candidates are Hispanic.
The controversy in
Texas is the result of the June 2006 Supreme
Court ruling on Texas' 2003 Congressional
redistricting efforts. In its release, NALEO explained that "a panel of federal judges
changed the boundaries of certain Texas
Congressional districts, including District 23,
currently held by U.S. Representative Henry
Bonilla (R). As a result, the November
election in the district was a special election,
with five Democratic candidates challenging
Bonilla. To win the special election and avoid a
run-off battle, a candidate needed to get at
least a majority of the vote. None of the
candidates received a majority, so U.S.
Representative Bonilla will face former U.S. Representative Ciro Rodriguez
(D) in a
run-off contest scheduled for December 2006."
|
Hispanics in
U.S. House of
Representatives |
|
|
No. Hispanics in the House
Prior to Elections |
Net Gain/Loss |
No. Hispanics in the House
After Elections |
|
ST |
DEM |
GOP |
DEM |
GOP |
DEM |
GOP |
|
AZ |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
|
CA |
7 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
7 |
0 |
|
CO |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
FL |
0 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
|
IL |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
NJ |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
NY |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
|
TX |
5 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
5 |
1 |
|
TL |
18 |
4 |
1 |
0 |
19 |
4 |
| TX |
 |
Totals above assume
the incumbent U.S.
Rep. Henry Bonilla
(R) wins the run-off
for the Texas 23rd
Congressional
District |
|
|
TX |
5 |
1 |
1 |
-1 |
6 |
0 |
|
TL |
18 |
4 |
2 |
-1 |
20 |
3 |
| TX |
 |
Totals above assume
the challenger, the
former U.S.
Rep. Ciro Rodriguez
(D) wins the run-off
for the Texas 23rd
Congressional
District. |
Data Compiled by: The NALEO
Education Fund |
|
Hispanic Elected
Officials at the State Level
Although political
achievements on the national level are
impressive, Hispanics have achieved respectable
footings in state chambers.
State Senates
The November elections yielded 58 Hispanics
State Senators across 20 states. Among
those Senators, Democrats
outnumber Republicans 5 to 1.
Florida, which has three Republican Senators, is
the only state to have more than one Hispanic
State Senator aligned with the GOP.
New Mexico has the
most Hispanic State Senators, with 13 Democrats
and one Republican. California is in
second place with 8 Democrats and one
Republican.
Three states each
lost one Hispanic State Senator in the fall
election: California,
Georgia and Maryland. All the Senators were
Democrats.
None of the gains made among Hispanic State Senators
were Republican. Below is a chart
detailing the number of Hispanic State Senators
across the United States.
|
Hispanics in
State Senates |
|
|
No. Hispanics in the House
Prior to Elections |
Net Gain/Loss |
No. Hispanics in the House
After Elections |
|
ST |
DEM |
GOP |
DEM |
GOP |
DEM |
GOP |
|
AZ |
5 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
5 |
0 |
|
CA |
9 |
1 |
-1 |
0 |
8 |
1 |
|
CO |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
|
FL |
0 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
|
GA |
1 |
0 |
-1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
HI |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
IL |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
4 |
0 |
|
MA |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
MD |
1 |
1 |
-1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
MI |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
MN |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
NE |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
NM |
13 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
13 |
1 |
|
NY |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
4 |
0 |
|
NV |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
NC |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
RI |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
TX |
7 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
6 |
1 |
|
UT |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
WA |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
TL |
51 |
9 |
-2 |
0 |
49 |
9 |
|
Data Compiled by: The NALEO
Education Fund |
|
State Houses
More than half of the lower houses in the United
States have at least one Hispanic
Representative. In the wake of the
November 7th election, Texas has 30 Hispanic
Representatives serving in its Legislature, the
highest of any state in the union. New
Mexico comes in a close second with 28 elected
Hispanic officials. Both states reported a net
gain of one Hispanic State Representative as a
result of the 2006 election.
Nationally,
Hispanics increased their ranks in seven state
houses, but no state had an increase greater
than one elected official. Sixteen state houses
had no change in their numbers of Hispanic
Representatives. Florida, which was one of
five states that posted a decline in Hispanic
representation, lost two Republicans.
|
Net Changes in the Number of
Hispanics in State Houses of
Representatives or
Assemblies |
|
State Houses with Hispanic
Representatives |
Changes resulting from Nov.
7th Election |
|
Houses with Increases |
Houses with Decreases |
Houses with No Change* |
|
28 |
7 |
5 |
16 |
|
* No Change in Number of
Representatives |
|
NALEO views
the gains in lower State Houses as evidence of
the political strength of Hispanic candidates in
states with merging Hispanic communities.
Although 2006 was a volatile election year, NALEO observed that among the nine states with
significant concentrations of traditional
Hispanic populations - Arizona, California,
Colorado, Florida, Illinois, New Jersey, New
Mexico, New York and Texas - Hispanic
Representatives netted a loss of only one seat.
In other states, there was a net gain of three
seats.
Below is a chart
detailing the number of Hispanic Representatives
serving in State Legislatures.
|
Hispanics in
State Houses of
Representatives or
Assemblies |
|
|
No. Hispanics in the House
Prior to Elections |
Net Gain/Loss |
No. Hispanics in the House
After Elections |
|
ST |
DEM |
GOP |
DEM |
GOP |
DEM |
GOP |
|
AZ |
12 |
0 |
-1 |
0 |
11 |
0 |
|
CA |
18 |
1 |
-1 |
0 |
17 |
1 |
|
CO |
5 |
0 |
-1 |
0 |
4 |
0 |
|
CT |
6 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
6 |
0 |
|
DE |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
FL |
2 |
14 |
0 |
-2 |
2 |
12 |
|
GA |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
|
ID |
1 |
0 |
-1 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
|
IL |
7 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
8 |
0 |
|
IN |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
KS |
3 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
1 |
|
MA |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
|
MD |
2 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
|
MI |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
|
MN |
1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
|
MO |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
MT |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
NH |
1 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
1 |
|
NJ |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
NM |
28 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
28 |
3 |
|
NY |
12 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
12 |
1 |
|
NV |
1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
|
NC |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
OR |
0 |
2 |
0 |
-1 |
0 |
1 |
|
PA |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
RI |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
|
SC |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
TN |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
TX |
29 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
30 |
1 |
|
UT |
2 |
0 |
-1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
WA |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
|
WI |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
|
WY |
1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
|
TL |
148 |
30 |
2 |
0 |
150 |
30 |
|
Data Compiled by: The NALEO
Education Fund |
|
The 2006 election
year featured several races involving Hispanic
candidates that have yet to be decided at the
time of this writing. In addition to the
special election in December to determine which
candidate will serve the 23rd District of Texas,
New Mexico also has an unresolved race.
Incumbent U.S. Representative Heather Wilson
(R) is in a close race with New Mexico
Attorney General Patricia Madrid (D). The
final count is not likely to be known for
several more days, and if the outcome is
contested, the uncertainty could extend a week
or more. If Madrid wins, the
total number of Hispanics in Congress would increase
to 24.
As the two main
political parties begin to focus in on the 2008
election, they are likely to pay increasing
attention to Hispanic voters and the potential
for Hispanic
candidates to contribute to local and
national victories.
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