Click for printable version
Click to send to a friend

Election 2002 HISPANIC CANDIDATES Hispanic candidates who will appear on the Clark County primary or general election ballot: • 1st Congressional District: Alfred Ordunez, Republican • 3rd Congressional District: Dario Herrera, Democrat • Attorney General: Brian Sandoval, Republican • State Senate District 2: Tino Mendoza, Republican • State Senate District 10: Bob Coffin, Democrat* • State Senate District 12: Adriana Martinez, Democrat • Assembly District 5: David Griego, Republican • Assembly District 11: George Cantu, Democrat • Assembly District 16: John Oceguera, Democrat* • Assembly District 17: Luis Valera, Republican • Assembly District 21: Lisa Cano, Democrat • Assembly District 28: Moises Denis, Democrat • Clark County Commission, District E: Tony Badillo, Democrat • Clark County Sheriff: Joe Castillo and Gordon Martines • Clark County Clerk: Gilbert Avila, Republican • Clark County Public Administrator: Adrian Mendoza, Democrat • District Court, Department 2: Valorie Vega • District Court, Department 10: Elizabeth Gonzalez • Family Court, Department L: Fernando Guzman • Nevada Supreme Court, Seat B: Don Chairez • Board of Regents, District 5: Aldo Aguirre • Board of Regents, District 12: Andres Ramirez • Clark County School Board, District D: Larry Mason* and Pablo Zavala • State Board of Education, District 5: Priscilla Rocha* • State Board of Education, District 6: Albert Ochoa *Denotes incumbent -- SOURCE: HISPANICS IN POLITICS

Saturday, August 03, 2002
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

ELECTION 2002: Hispanic candidates admit challenge

Minority vote alone will not win races

This year's primary election has drawn 27 Hispanic candidates, a record for Nevada that some observers say signals the political arrival of the state's fastest-growing minority group.

But the candidates themselves say there is much work to be done.

Many are campaigning in Clark County districts redrawn to include a greater percentage of Hispanic voters. They say they cannot win these offices simply because they are Hispanic. They have to get out the vote and convince non-Hispanics that they are capable of representing their interests as well.

"I'm not counting on the Hispanic voters giving the Hispanic candidate the vote," said George Cantu, a Democratic candidate for Assembly District 11. "I'm working my district the best I can to garner every vote. I'm not assuming I'm a shoe-in."

His tack might be the way to get Hispanics into public office, said Fran Montes, president of Hispanics in Politics, a nonprofit group working to increase Latino participation in government.

"The Hispanic community is astute enough to look at the quality of candidates," she said. "They are going to look at who is going to address and respond to their concerns. They are going to look closely at the individual."

Montes' words ring particularly true for Democrat Moises Denis. He faces a strong incumbent in Assembly District 28, which has one of the highest concentrations of Hispanics in Southern Nevada. Boundaries for the district, now represented by fellow Democrat Vonne Chowning, were redrawn by the 2001 Legislature with the Hispanic community in mind.

"There are many non-Hispanic folks who have done a good job representing Hispanics," he said. "But if a non-Hispanic can represent Hispanics well, a Hispanic can represent the rest of the community just as well."

Montes noted several non-Hispanic elected officials, including Clark County Commissioner Myrna Williams and Las Vegas City Councilman Lawrence Weekly, have been successful at winning broad Hispanic support. Democrat Tony Badillo is challenging Williams in the Sept. 3 primary.

The spectrum of Hispanic candidates, split almost evenly between Democrats and Republicans, will help shatter the myth that Hispanics "all act and think in one manner," said David Griego, a Republican candidate for Assembly District 5.

"Hispanic issues are not different from anyone else's," Griego said. "We are concerned with taxes, education and health care. But Hispanics are not a solid block of voters. There are those from the far right wing to the far left."

Motivating Hispanic voters to hit the polls could be the deciding factor for these political newcomers. And their success could have far-reaching effects on future Hispanic candidates.

"We (Hispanics) have drawn so much attention that if we don't show up in large numbers, it could hurt us down the road," said Luis Valera, a Republican candidate for Assembly District 17. "We might not be taken as seriously in later elections."

Carlos McCarthy, whose Ethnic Data Services identifies Hispanic registered voters, Hispanic homeowners and Hispanic business owners in any given district, said about 400,000 Hispanics live in Clark County, only 65,000 of whom are registered to vote. But in a nonpresidential election, where turnout is expected to be low, those votes could decide a number a races.

"The power of the Hispanic vote has been totally underestimated," he said. "But it's in an election like this that it will count."

Ted Jelen, chairman of the Political Science Department at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, said new groups entering politics typically don't see immediate success.

As with any challengers, Jelen said the Hispanic candidates will have to overcome the edge incumbents historically have held in elections. They also have to work for name recognition, which is especially crucial in a election with low voter turnout.

"Coming out in large numbers is a necessary first step," he said. "You can't win until you play. Hispanics are playing now."