Ethnic Cues: The Role of Shared Ethnicity in Latino Political Participation

7.

chapter 7¿Viva Bill Richardson? Latino Voters and the 2008 Presidential Election “I won’t be running as a Hispanic candidate, I am running as an American—proud to be Hispanic , proud of my heritage. Ours is a growing, dynamic community in America. But I won’t just be focusing on Hispanic issues or only trying to get the Hispanic vote.” —bill richardson, April 2007 On January 20, 2007, William Blaine Richardson III made history by announcing his intention to run for president of the United States. Richardson, the governor of New Mexico, became the ‹rst credible Latino candidate for the U.S. presidency. After the ‹rst few “exploratory” months of the campaign, Richardson returned to Los Angeles, his birthplace, on May 21 to announce his of‹cial candidacy in a bilingual address delivered while Richardson was surrounded by prominent Latino of‹cials. Standing on the same stage at the Biltmore Hotel where John F. Kennedy had accepted the 1960 Democratic presidential nomination , Richardson opened his speech with the words,“Con orgullo, espero ser el primer presidente latino de los Estados Unidos [With pride, I hope to be the ‹rst Latino president of the United States].” The heavily Latino crowd erupted in cheers before Richardson had said anything in English. The notable Latinas and Latinos on stage with Richardson included Gloria Molina, the ‹rst Latino elected to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors and chair of the 2000 Democratic National Convention; California state senator Gilbert Cedillo; and Edward Romero, former U.S. ambassador to Spain. Henry Cisneros, the former mayor of San Antonio and former U.S. secretary of housing and urban development, and other prominent Latinos sent their congratulations and endorsements. While Richardson was certain to elicit interest, enthusiasm, and support from the Latino community, he also faced a 136 signi‹cant obstacle in mobilizing Latino voters for his long-shot presidential bid—Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton. Despite a long career in public service, Richardson lacked the name recognition possessed by prior minority candidates such as the Reverend Jesse Jackson, who garnered between 80 and 90 percent of the African American vote in 1984 and 1988 (Tate 1993). In 1988, when Jackson won eleven state primaries, he was not campaigning against a Democratic candidate already well known and popular among Blacks, as Clinton was. Richardson thus faced a far more signi‹cant challenge. Although he garnered attention as a Latino candidate, many observers questioned whether he would mobilize the Latino community. Would Latinos throw their support to Richardson in the way Blacks had supported Jackson? Would Richardson’s Anglo surname create confusion and questions for Latino voters? In Richardson’s words, he had “a slight problem . . . with the electorate—Hispanics don’t know I’m Hispanic.” Further, against the backdrop of growing anti-immigrant sentiment , would a Latino candidate be able to campaign as a Latino, or would he shy away from the Latino vote? This chapter explores the role of shared ethnicity in presidential politics, a question that has never before been addressed vis- à-vis the Latino electorate. Some scholars have argued that ethnic politics is limited to local elections, where patronage and ethnic loyalties are more likely to be visible (see chapter 5). However, as the Jackson candidacy demonstrated and as Tate (1993) makes very clear, ethnic politics may have a place in the presidential arena as well. Analysis of Richardson’s presidential campaign, policy positions, and support from Latino voters suggests that shared ethnicity played an important and mobilizing role in the ‹rst Latino presidential bid. Although he did not win the nomination, his candidacy highlights the importance of the Latino electorate and Richardson’s status as a newly established national Latino leader.¿quién es bill richardson? William Blaine Richardson III was born in Pasadena, California, in 1947 but moved to Mexico City as a newborn. Richardson’s mother, María Luisa LópezCollada , was born and still resides in Mexico. His father, William Blaine Richardson Jr., a banker originally from Massachusetts, had settled in Mexico, where he met and married López-Collada. Although many accounts describe Richardson as“half”Latino, his paternal grandmother, Rosaura Ojeda Medero, was also Mexican, and his father was born in Nicaragua and lived there until he reached age ‹fteen, when he moved to Boston for high school and college. Bill Latino Voters and the 2008 Presidential Election / 137 Richardson’s paternal grandfather, however, could trace...