Obama gets support from some in GOP

Presidential candidate Barack Obama's campaign is hoping Republicans in Nevada will bolster his chances in the January Democratic caucuses, while the campaign of his top rival, Hillary Clinton, is seeking to make inroads among Hispanics.

Virginia's Democratic governor, Tim Kaine, a top national Obama supporter, said the 660 Nevada Republicans who have pledged to caucus for the Illinois senator prove that Obama has crossover appeal.

Support from independent and Republican voters made possible Kaine's 2005 win in Virginia, a GOP state in presidential elections, Kaine said during a Monday conference call with Nevada reporters.

"That core of voters who are critical in Virginia, and frankly in most states, is very open to Senator Obama's candidacy," Kaine said. "So when the campaign told me this significant amount of Republicans had agreed to caucus for Barack Obama in Nevada, I was not surprised."

These voters, Kaine said, "are repelled by what they see in Washington, and they really want someone who is an independent thinker." Their willingness to support Obama also shows that the Illinois senator can potentially do well in next year's general election, he said.

The campaign says Republican voters came to them, not vice versa. The list of GOP Obama supporters, which the campaign provided, doesn't include elected officials or other big names, just rank-and-file registered Republicans from across the state.

There are Republicans for Obama groups in Iowa and New Hampshire. The Nevada group members will reach out to undecided voters on both sides of the aisle, the campaign said.

Only registered Democrats can participate in the Jan. 19 caucuses, but the Democratic Party allows people to register to vote or to change party affiliation when they get to the caucuses that day.

Republicans are requiring would-be caucus-goers to register 30 days in advance. The Dec. 19 deadline is coming Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Clinton's campaign announced that it is starting its first radio ads on Spanish radio statewide as it seeks to court the Hispanic vote.

All the Democratic campaigns have efforts in place to target Hispanic voters. Obama and Bill Richardson previously aired Spanish radio ads, but they are no longer airing.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, a Clinton supporter who came to town to stump for the candidate over the weekend, said in a conference call that the Clinton campaign is working hardest for the Latino vote.

Winning Hispanics' support, he said, "is very similar to the formula for success in California and throughout the country, for the Hispanic vote or for any vote, and that is to invest in it."

The ad, called "Nuestra Candidata," or "Our Candidate," says of the New York senator, "She wants all of us to have access to health insurance. For the past 35 years, Hillary has been fighting for a quality education for our children. And like Bill Clinton did, Hillary will support economic policies that will create millions of new jobs."

Nevada Assemblyman Ruben Kihuen, also a Clinton supporter, said he believes the campaign will be able to turn out Hispanic voters. The 27-year-old Kihuen, who is seen as a rising Democratic star, won his first election last year against an incumbent Democrat with an intensive grass-roots effort in his heavily Hispanic district.

"I think I know exactly what it takes to get Latinos out to vote," he said. "Last year, in my race, in my district, we tripled Latino turnout."

Contact reporter Molly Ball at mball@reviewjournal.com or (702) 387-2919.