In what is perhaps a sign that the Hillary Clinton campaign could be competitive in Georgia, a Washington Post story highlights her efforts to increase Hispanic voter registration and turnout in the Peach State. At the time of the 2014 elections, 1.8% of registered voters in Georgia were Hispanic, and at the beginning of this year, the number stood at 2%. From the Post story:
“The Latino voting population could be 8 percent but they don’t all vote at that rate,” said Stacey Abrams, the Democratic state House minority leader who also leads the nonpartisan New Georgia Project. Her group has spent the past 12 years registering minority voters, especially the state’s African American population, but is now partnering with other organizations to register the fast-growing immigrant populations in the Atlanta metro area.
“If you just hold steady and increase just a little bit in those populations, add that to the African American vote and add it to the white progressive vote, that’s your victory,” Abrams said. “To the extent investment comes to Georgia, and particularly the work we’re able to do down-ballot, you not only elect Hillary Clinton, you activate voters in those pockets of minority voters where you can take state House races.”
According to the story, outreach to Latinos in Georgia will likely be similar to the Clinton’s campaign efforts in other states with substantial Hispanic populations. including organizing Latinas to engage with other Hispanics and getting children of undocumented immigrants to knock on doors to encourage voter registration and support for Clinton.
Donald Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric is inspiring Hispanics to become citizens and register to vote, according to the Post story. Today, the Trump campaign released its first general election TV ad, entitled “Two Americas: Immigration:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mKzYPt0Bu4
From a press release from the Trump campaign: “The new ad provides a stark comparison between Hillary Clinton’s reality in which Americans are victims of the rigged system in Washington that compromises our borders, jeopardizes our jobs, and flouts our laws, and Mr. Trump’s vision for our country in which we secure our borders and put American jobs and safety first.” The ad is part of what the campaign says will be a focus for next week on ending illegal immigration. The ads will run for 10 days in the battleground states of Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida and North Carolina, but not Georgia.