Obama Seeks to Make the Sale to Hispanics
Despite Ability to Draw Crowds and Donations,
Senator Is Still Largely Unknown to Crucial Group
By MIRIAM JORDAN
August 8, 2007; Page A7
http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB ... in_tff_top

MIAMI -- Before 2,000 people at the convention of a powerful Hispanic advocacy group recently, Sen. Barack Obama made a pitch for unity between African Americans and Hispanics. "Our separate struggles are really one," the Illinois Democrat declared, quoting a telegram Martin Luther King Jr. sent in 1968 to farm-worker activist Cesar Chávez.

• Getting Acquainted: Sen. Barack Obama is trying to raise his profile among Latino voters.
• Relationship Issues: Nearly half haven't heard of him, and there is tension between Latinos and blacks in many communities.
• Marriage Material?: Latinos seem likely to back Obama in a general election but support others in Democratic primaries.Mr. Obama compared last year's massive immigration rallies led by Hispanics to the civil-rights marches of African-Americans in the 1960s, and called for the two groups to stay the course in a common fight for equality. To rousing applause at the convention of the National Council of La Raza, he alluded to "one dream" for blacks and Latinos. Later, he cited his Kenyan-born father as an example of an immigrant who came here in pursuit of the American dream.

Despite becoming this presidential race's phenomenon, with the power to draw huge crowds and raise millions of dollars, Mr. Obama remains relatively unknown among the country's fastest-growing electorate: Nearly half of Latino voters have never heard of him, according to a June Gallup poll.



Even as he gains awareness among Hispanics, he may find wooing them to his campaign a challenge. Across the U.S., tensions simmer between Hispanics and blacks who regard each other as rivals for jobs, educational resources, housing and political power. In Los Angeles, Hispanics have become the majority in traditionally black enclaves and clashes have erupted between the groups in schools and on the streets.

For Mr. Obama, this has created a tricky situation. The fiery debate over immigration in Congress alienated many Hispanics, pushing conservatives among them into the Democratic camp and encouraging others to register to vote. But to tap into that, Mr. Obama must navigate past Democratic primary opponents who are better positioned to capitalize on those voters.

"If Obama were the Democratic presidential nominee, he would do well in the Hispanic community," says Mark Mellman, a Democratic pollster. But "he will have to fight for their support in the primaries."

Hillary Clinton already boasts name recognition and endorsements from prominent Latino leaders, while Bill Richardson, the New Mexico governor, is Hispanic and speaks fluent Spanish. Mr. Obama's message of a shared black-Latino struggle may strike a chord with political activists, but could ring hollow with core Latino voters.

"The Hispanic and black elites may be singing 'Kumbaya' together. But at the neighborhood level, they're duking it out," says Paula McClain, a Duke University political scientist who studies black-Latino relations. "Obama needs to understand the nuance and not assume a broad-brush coalition" between them.

Ms. McClain and other academics say Hispanics have negative stereotypical views of blacks. Generally, Hispanics feel they share more in common with whites than blacks, says Ms. McClain. "In a primary contest, one has to wonder how a Latino electorate will feel about voting for a black person."


There is precedent for African-Americans and Hispanics combining electoral power. In the 2005 Los Angeles mayoral race, many black leaders disenchanted with white incumbent James Hahn threw support to Antonio Villaraigosa. The Mexican-American candidate won on the promise of bridging the city's racial divide -- with support from the African-American electorate. But, "it wasn't a black-brown unity election," says Jaime Regalado, executive director of the Pat Brown Institute for Public Affairs at California State University, Los Angeles. "It was a sign of displeasure with the incumbent."

In Miami, Mr. Obama introduced a jingle to woo Latinos, a percussion-infused "reggaeton" tune in Spanish with a refrain to pump up his recognition: "How do you say it? What do you call him? Obama. Obama."

"The community really hasn't been introduced to Obama," says Larry Gonzalez, a political consultant who formed "Latinos for Obama," which includes high-profile Hispanics, many of them lawyers and entrepreneurs.

As the first primary state with a significant Hispanic electorate, Nevada is expected to offer a hint of how Latinos vote in other Hispanic-heavy states such as Arizona and New Mexico. In Las Vegas, Mr. Obama has met on three occasions with Hispanic hotel and casino workers, who make up a large portion of the influential culinary-workers union, as well as with local Hispanic political figures.

In a sign of the challenges Mr. Obama faces, a recent independent poll by a group called Latino Decisions says that in Nevada, Mrs. Clinton currently is favored by 55% of Democratic or Democratic-leaning Latinos, while Mr. Richardson has 14% and Mr. Obama 6%. But a new national Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll shows better results for the Illinois senator. It found Mrs. Clinton is favored by 58% of Hispanics, followed by Messrs. Obama and Edwards with 10% each and Mr. Richardson with 9%.

The Obama campaign has begun distributing campaign literature in Nevada in Spanish and says it is putting more than 30 staffers on the ground with offices in Las Vegas, Reno and other cities. The campaign says it is also mobilizing thousands of volunteers to go door to door.

Spanish-language television is likely to play an important role in the primaries as it amps up campaign coverage. To Mr. Obama's disadvantage, "they are going to have direct sound bites in Spanish from Bill Richardson," notes Federico Subervi, professor of mass media at Texas State University in San Marcos. On the other hand, he says, Latinos more politically attuned -- and more likely to vote in the primary -- get their news both in English and Spanish.

Mr. Obama has secured the support of some prominent Latino politicians, such as Illinois Rep. Luis Gutierrez, and California Senate Majority leader Gloria Romero. "He understands civil rights and poverty," says Ms. Romero, who supported Rev. Jesse Jackson when he ran for president. Mrs. Clinton has won endorsements from heavyweights such as L.A. Mayor Villaraigosa, New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez and Dolores Huerta, who co-founded the United Farm Workers of America with Cesar Chávez.

Write to Miriam Jordan at miriam.jordan@wsj.com