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Looking for Recognition

Bill Richardson steps into 2008 Presidential Arena

“Hmmmm.”

OK, 14 years in Congress … U.N. Ambassador … Secretary of Energy … Governor of New Mexico … Negotiated with dictators in Iraq, North Korea, Cuba, Zaire, Nigeria, Yugoslavia, Kenya … got a ceasefire in Darfur … Nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize four times …

”So … What makes you think you can be president?”

Bill Richardson’s political commercial is titled, Job Interview, and sums up his dilemma and his personality.

The affable, self-deprecating, Democratic candidate for president of the United States is working hard to be taken seriously despite his impressive resume.

Diane Denish, New Mexico lieutenant governor, recently stumped for her boss at Tomaso’s restaurant with Richardson’s Arizona steering committee. Arizonans on the committee for the lone Latino presidential candidate include Congressman Ed Pastor as honorary chair, state Rep. Kyrsten Sinema as co-chair, and state House Minority Whip Steve Gallardo as co-chair.

Sinema also has organized a group called Women for Richardson, with the women’s vote in mind. His state supporters point out the obvious – that their candidate is the most qualified on paper – and that with 18 months to the election the numbers will change.

They’ve got a lot of work ahead. Even Latinos don’t know who Richardson Lopez (his full name) is and that he’s running for president. A March 2007 poll by the Latino Policy Coalition of 1,000 Latinos found that only 25 percent said they knew him. Half reported they had never heard of him. The poll also found that Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton scores most favorably with Latinos (68 percent), while Republican candidate Rudy Giuliani is most popular (45 percent).

Presidential candidates are starting early here because our February primary is among the first measures of who Latinos might favor.

The two Democratic candidates the polls identify as the frontrunners also are reaching out to regional Latino voters.

Sen. Barack Obama has a group called Latinos for Obama ’08, although he hasn’t started an Arizona committee yet, according to his campaign organizers.

On the other hand, leading Democratic candidate Clinton is making moves in Arizona.

Her campaign recently hired Raul Yzaguirre, ASU professor and former head of the National Council of La Raza, to co-chair her presidential campaign. She’s enlisted Jarrett Maupin as African American outreach coordinator. In addition, she has hired Monica Perez, former director of the local chapter of the Center for Progressive Leadership, who relocated to Las Vegas to run a campaign outreach to Latinos and other voters in Nevada.

Perez says her mother also is a Clinton supporter. “When I told my Mom where I had to move, she said, ‘No.’ When I told her why I had to move, she said, ‘¡Vete, vete, tienes que, mija!’”

The fact that the Democrats have a woman, an African American and a Latino among its candidates sets an historical political precedent.

However, that’s not the case in the Republican side. “…the 10 Republican candidates represented all races, creeds and colors of rich white men,” quipped late night talk show host Conan O’Brien about the first Republican presidential debate.

Sources inside state Latino Republican circles say they are divided about whom to back. Of the three frontrunners, most Latinos are opting for Sen. John McCain because he’s the home state favorite. Many local Latinos think Giuliani, a former New York mayor, is the candidate best equipped to beat Clinton.

In addition, Mitt Romney, a Massachusetts governor and Mormon, is also considered among the top three. One local Republicano wonders if Arizona conservatives will vote for a Mormon presidential candidate. “Look what happened here with Matt Salmon, a Mormon,” she says. Salmon was defeated by Democrat Janet Napolitano in the 2005 race for governor.

For the Democrats, local assessments say that with time some Latinos will lean toward Richardson. Latina professionals may favor Clinton. And that younger Latinos may be attracted to Obama.

“I don’t think many Arizona Latinos have made up their mind on who they support, just yet,” says Perez.

She adds, “The only hope I have is that Latinos truly step up and make their voices heard – loud and clear – that we are a force in the political movement. We deserve every human right, and will fight for social change.