Latinos Should ‘Take the Power’ : Local Elections Must Build Toward Reapportionment Fight

As the decade comes to an end, California Latinos approach the litmus test of political power: reapportionment. Since the last reapportionment in 1981, Latinos in the Southwest have registered historic growth in political power, gaining 1,500 elected officials, for a total of 3,066.

But the growth of Latino political power has been slower in California than other Southwestern states. Institutional obstacles such as at-large local elections are still prevalent in more than 90% of California’s school boards and city councils, effectively limiting local Latino electoral participation (California Latinos have a net increase of just six elected officials since 1984).

The problem is that without local electoral victories, the 2.3-million-strong Latinos adults eligible to vote (1.4 million are registered), will continue to look down their noses at state and federal elections. Simply put, when Latinos win local offices in proportion to their numbers, they develop a political infrastructure that turns out the Latino vote, nurtures new leaders, and allows Latino voters to learn from and have an effect on the political process. Over time, local Latino political power translates into state and national results. City Council members run for mayor. Mayors may run for the Legislature. State legislators run for Congress. A “Latino” culture of political participation is created.

This process now has 10 years of history in the Southwest, and the results are admirable: In the 1988 presidential election, Latino turnout in Texas, for example, increased 20% to 600,000, compared to 1984’s total of 495,000. Texas Latino turnout increased from 9% of total votes cast in 1984 to 11% of total votes cast in 1988.

In comparison, California Latino voter turnout throughout the 1980s has remained constant at a mediocre 6%-7% of total votes cast. This is true despite a 25% increase in Latino registered voters since 1984. The late organizer Willie Velasquez’s old adage “if we can’t win, we won’t vote” holds especially true for California Latinos.

Unfortunately, the state Democratic Party and groups like Citizens for Participation in Democracy continue to oppose, in practice, Latino empowerment. For example, the CPD, financially supported by Sen. Alan Cranston (D-Calif.) competes directly with Latino leaders and organizations over the direction and scope of Latino politics. The Cranston-type approach sees Latinos as numbers to be cattle-called during state and federal elections and ignored the rest of the time. For them, voter registration means standing at a supermarket with a clipboard. In contrast, Latino organizations like the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project seek empowerment through door-to-door voter registration and education around an agenda defined by the community.

This, in a nutshell, is the challenge for Latino leaders. While Latinos stand on the threshold of achieving formidable political power and thus making history, unprecedented effort is required.

The Southwest Voter Registration Project, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund and the National Assn. of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials are working together to ensure maximum Latino participation in the 1990 census, fair reapportionment and a rapid transition of Latino permanent residents to citizens and registered voters.

With hundreds of Latinos running for office from this September to November, 1990, the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project believes that a combination of community organizing, voter registration/get-out-the-vote campaigns, voting-rights litigation and Latino electoral victories can create enough momentum to raise Latino turnout to 9% of all votes cast in the November, 1990, elections.

Such a performance would allow Latino leaders more leverage in negotiations with legislative leaders and the governor. Given current population trends, by the 1991 reapportionment Latinos could legitimately expect four state Senate seats and seven Assembly seats (up from the present seven total Latino seats statewide.) The Latino hand would also be strengthened within both parties. At present, Latinos function as appendages in both the Democratic and Republican parties, without real independent capacity and leveraging power. This is especially embarrassing with the Democrats, since Latinos are 15% of all registered Democrats and regularly vote 75% for Democrats.

With a good performance, Latinos could demand that the Democrats and Republicans start running Latinos for statewide offices. Orange County Supervisor Gaddi Vasquez’s potential candidacy for statewide office as a Republican is an example. Latinos could leverage resources from both parties for local Latino candidates.

Thus the stakes are high for California Latinos over the next few years. But political power is rarely ceded.

Perhaps Latinos should take up the challenge of Assembly Speaker Willie Brown. In his speech at a recent conference on reapportionment, Brown said, “ . . . if you (Latinos) really believe you deserve political power, I urge you to take the power.”

“Taking the power” would be the best possible tribute to the late Willie Velasquez.