Posted 2:50 PM by Robert

Pathetic ... And Bound To Lose XXIX: A Day At The Races

Several of George Bush's closest advisors are from racial minorities. But not so for John Kerry, where CNN reports:

Unlike Al Gore whose campaign manager, political director and finance director were African-American, the Kerry campaign, as of yet, has no one of color in the innermost circle, including Kerry campaign manager, campaign chairperson, media adviser, policy director, foreign policy adviser, general election manager, convention planner, national finance chairman, and head of VP search team. That's an odd position for a campaign that will probably rely on African-Americans and Hispanics for one in four of their general election votes and the crucial margin of difference in battleground states like Florida, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Ohio. [Link from Henry Hanks]

Perhaps that lack of outreach helps explain why John Kerry and George Bush are tied among Hispanic voters in a recent Battlefield Poll as reported in La Opinion:

Una nueva encuesta dada a conocer ayer señala un empate en el apoyo de los votantes hispanos al presidente republicano George W. Bush y el retador demócrata John Kerry, en 46% para cada uno. Entre el total de votantes, Kerry llevaba una ventaja de 49% contra 48%.

[A new survey indicates a tie in the support of Hispanic voters between republican president George W. Bush and the democratic challenger John Kerry, with 46% for each one. Between all voters, Kerry took an advantage of 49% against 48%.]

This is not a fluke. A recent but slightly older Pew Hispanic Center study concluded:

Foreign-born Latinos give President Bush higher approval ratings (59%) than the native born (42%). Views are less polarized within the Latino population when it comes to the upcoming election as all segments say they would favor Senator John Kerry over the incumbent. However, preferences on the race among likely Latino voters (Bush 39% vs. Kerry 52%) show that Kerry is running weaker than Democratic candidates in several recent presidential elections who have captured about two-thirds of the Latino vote. [Nationally representative sample of 1,316 Latinos from February 11 to March 11, 2004. Margin of error of +/- 3.42 percent nationwide.]

Can a Democrat be elected to the presidency in 2004 with only 52% of Hispanic voters in his corner? It appears that Senator Kerry hasn't even bothered to include any latinos in his higher campaign staff who might be able to answer the question for him.

MORE: Cautionary notes from Latino Pundit.