2006年VOA标准英语-Hispanic Voters Are Powerful Political Force in

By Cindy Saine
Miami
27 October 2006

Hispanic voters make up about 14 percent of the 11 million eligible¹ voters in the southeastern U.S. state of Florida, a powerful political force courted by both the Republican and Democratic parties. In the November seventh elections, the focus in Florida is on a close race to replace outgoing Republican Governor Jeb Bush, and six or seven races for seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. VOA's Cindy Saine reports from Miami on the diverse groups that make up the Hispanic vote, the main issues they care about and their attitudes just days ahead of the elections.

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ballot3 as Eduardo Barros, Sr., looks on in Miami, Monday, Oct. 23, 2006" src="/upimg/allimg/070505/1507040.jpg" width="210" border="0" /> Jose DeLa Hoz, left, practices on a demo voting machine before casting his ballot as Eduardo Barros, Sr., looks on in Miami, Monday, Oct. 23, 2006

Hispanic voters in Florida are different from Hispanic voters across the rest of the United States. In most states, a majority of Hispanics have traditionally backed the Democratic Party because of its support for immigration reform, government services and civil rights. But in Florida, a majority of Hispanic voters has long been solidly in the Republican camp.

"The Hispanic voter in Florida tends to lean more to the conservative side, more to the Republican side, and, at the same time, tends to be very independent when it comes to local elections. So, at the presidential level, they vote one way, but we have seen that they are willing to cross party lines on local and federal races," said Robert Deposada, president of The Latino Coalition⁶, a non-partisan, pro-business organization based in Washington.

He says that is the case in the race between Senator Bill Nelson, a Democrat², and Republican Congresswoman Katherine Harris. DePosada says Nelson, who has a commanding lead in the polls, is getting support among Hispanics, both Republican and Democrat.

"At the same time, we're seeing a strong level of support for the Republican candidate for governor, Charlie Crist. So it's going to be very interesting. I think, particularly, in the Florida area, you are seeing the Hispanics looking at the candidate itself, and not necessarily just at the party line," he said.

Democrats⁷ say foreign policy plays a key role in the choices Florida Hispanics make. Most of South Florida's large and politically-influential Cuban community has been staunchly Republican ever since late President John F. Kennedy, a Democrat, denied air cover for exile Cuban forces during the 1962 Bay of Pigs invasion.

Former Democratic President Bill Clinton fared better for awhile, but that ended when his administration sent young refugee Elian Gonzalez back to Cuba in 2000. That was just months before Democratic candidate Al Gore⁸ lost Florida by just 537 votes, costing him the White House in a drawn-out and controversial election battle.

Joe Garcia, based in Miami, is executive vice⁵ president of the National Democratic Network, a non-profit group that generally supports Democratic candidates. He notes that Republican President Bush picked up Hispanic votes in the last election.

"In the last presidential election nationally, Republicans picked up almost 10 points. They brought the Hispanic vote to almost 40, 41, 42 percent of the Hispanics in the United States voted for President Bush, which was a historic high. And, it's probably one of the largest shifts in American electoral history. That was different than in Florida, where they had a little bit of a loss from their strong Hispanic base," he said.

Democrats admit that Florida's Republican Party has spent more money, is better organized and has made a better effort to reach out to Hispanics in the state.

Key issues in this election of concern to Hispanics nationally include approval of a 1000-kilometer fence along the Mexican border, and attempts to make illegal migration⁴ a felony.

A national survey released in early October by the Latino Coalition indicates the bitter immigration debate may trigger a negative backlash against Republicans among Hispanic voters nationwide, or at least dampen voter turnout. But it also shows that Democrats have failed to capitalize on the opportunity.

In Florida, the two largest groups of Hispanic voters, Cuban Americans and those of Puerto Rican origin, do not consider immigration a top issue.

Luis Garcia is a Cuban American and is running as a Democrat for Florida's state legislature. He is former fire chief of Miami Beach, and currently a city councilman. Garcia says Hispanic voters care about economic and social issues. "For Hispanic voters, it is very important, The American Dream. To be able to buy a house, to be able to afford a house more than anything else. And the concerns they have right now, because of high taxes and the high cost of insurance, that dream is getting harder and harder to reach. That is the number one issue and a very close second is education," he said.

Luis Garcia says virtually all the voters he has talked to are unhappy with their political leaders. "I've been walking and knocking on doors, you know, of Democrats, Republicans and independents, and people are ready for a change. They are frustrated⁹, and they are, like in the movie, mad as heck and they don't want to take it anymore," he said.

Another significant group of voters and candidates in Florida are Haitian Americans. Some 245,000 Haitian Americans live in south Florida.

Ronald Brise is Haitian American, and is running as a Democrat for a seat in Florida's state legislature, representing parts of North Miami. He says Haitian Americans traditionally vote Democratic. But he says politics in Haiti can be a divisive issue in races here in Florida, as well. "For some reason, it's expected that Haitian-American candidates assume a position, or take a position on what's happening in Haitian politics. And, really, the ability of a Haitian-American candidate here, who is running for state legislature, or county commission or city council has very little purview¹⁰, if any, on what's happening in Haiti and international politics at all," he said.

But Brise also says the primary issue for Haitian-Americans is the same one worrying most other Florida voters - the high costs of housing and hurricane insurance.

1 eligible   

adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的

参考例句：

• He is an eligible young man.他是一个合格的年轻人。
• Helen married an eligible bachelor.海伦嫁给了一个中意的单身汉。

2 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

3 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

4 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

5 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

6 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

7 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 gore   

n.凝血，血污；v.（动物）用角撞伤，用牙刺破；缝以补裆；顶

参考例句：

• The fox lay dying in a pool of gore.狐狸倒在血泊中奄奄一息。
• Carruthers had been gored by a rhinoceros.卡拉瑟斯被犀牛顶伤了。

9 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 purview   

n.范围；眼界

参考例句：

• These are questions that lie outside the purview of our inquiry.这些都不是属于我们调查范围的问题。
• That,however,was beyond the purview of the court;it was a diplomatic matter.但是，那已不在法庭权限之内；那是个外交问题。