PHOENIX — Chicanos Por la Causa, formed in 1969 to fight discrimination against the Mexican-American community, kicked off its voter outreach campaign today called Latino Loud, underscoring the importance of registering to vote.
“We want them to understand how important their vote is, that is their voice and just educating them on how the process works you know, registering to vote — not being afraid, we did see in 2022 a lot of voter suppression so people are afraid,” Alicia Nunez, Chicanos Por La Causa president and CEO told ABC15.
Last year, a U.S. District Court struck down provisions of two Arizona house bills — 2492 and 2234 — which would’ve required new voters registering to provide proof of citizenship or residency and require county recorders to routinely check voter rolls to verify citizenship. Critics argued the laws unfairly targeted the Latino community.
“It’s just educating individuals, helping them understand not to be afraid and to be able to voice their voice by voting,” Nunez said.
According to data released earlier this year from the NALEO Education Fund, about a quarter of Arizona voters excepted to cast a ballot in November will be Latino — a crucial voter bloc that could potentially decide who wins the key battleground state.
Nunez said the Hispanic community is looking to see which candidate takes the time to really campaign and listen to issues that matter to them.
“You really have to come out and understand what the community really needs, I think sometimes people underestimate or think everyone fits one box and our community is very diverse in their thought process and what they believe in,” Nunez said.
Manuel Orellana, a registered Democrat, told ABC15 that this election cycle he’s undecided.
“At this point, I like more the Republicans because when they promise something even if it is a bad promise they keep their promise, Democrats they fail on their promises,” Orellana said, specifically pointing to immigration and the ongoing crisis at the border.
“They’ve been failing all the time, they haven’t done anything for the Dreamers and anything to stop the immigration at the borders and we need to take care of that immediately,” he told ABC15.
The economy, education, abortion rights and homelessness were other top issues for Hispanic voters.
“My background is in education and I think one of the biggest barriers is education or the lack of information making the best decision for their family. You know, the kiddos are the future of tomorrow,” Nubia Estrada, a first-generation American said.
Adrian Mora said the U.S. government should focus on helping Americans, rather than sending funding overseas.
“Our country is sending money and funding to foreign nations knowing that here in our country money could be well spent, and Phoenix for example, the homeless problem could be really solved with a lot of federal funding as well,” Mora told ABC15.
According to Chicanos Por La Cause, there are about 1.3 million eligible Hispanic voters in Arizona. During the 2022 midterms, their voter outreach campaign helped register more than 30,000 new voters.
That number could make all the difference, given how tight the race was in 2020 when President Joe Biden beat Donald Trump in Arizona by less than 11,000 votes.
