KLAS-TV Channel 8 News Las VegasHispanics Hope To Increase Their Political Clout
(Feb. 21) -- Leaders in the Southern Nevada Hispanic community say there is a disappointing contrast here that they're intent on changing: the disproportionately-low number of Latino elected officials.
"We have the fastest-growing Latino community in the United States," said Tony Sanchez, who adds with dismay: "I can count on one hand the number of elected Latino officials."
Sanchez should know. Recently chosen to lead the Latin Chamber of Commerce, Sanchez is also active in Hispanics In Politics, a group determined to increase the number of elected officials from Hispanic backgrounds.
"You need to have people in positions of power that when there are debates that are going to affect a particular community, that they get that viewpoint in there," Sanchez said. "And come November, 2002, we're going to double the number of elected officials we have today. No question."
Toward that end, dozens of Hispanics, many of them in their 20s and 30s, gathered on a Saturday in February at UNLV to attend the Hispanic Political Academy. If it were a university course, it could be called "How To Get Elected 101."
"We're not trying to convince them to get into politics. They're already interested, and that's why they're here," Sanchez said. "We want to just give them as many different exposures so they kind of understand what they're getting into."
Among the speakers is Pete Ernaut, who managed Kenny Guinn's successful campaign for governor four years ago.
"You got to have good intelligence," Ernaut told the crowd. "What do people think out there? Go talk to the teachers in the schools in your district. Go talk to the cops on the street."
Moises Denis, son of immigrants from Cuba, is among those listening. He's running for the State Assembly in District 28, on Las Vegas's east side, where Denis has lived for nearly 30 years.
"We (Hispanics) need to get involved," Denis said. "I can't go out there and say 'why don't we do this and why don't we do that?' if I'm not willing to put my actions behind that."
Also in the audience is Erick Sanchez, whose father moved here from Mexico. A go-getter, who at the age of 22 already runs his own steel fabrication and construction business, Sanchez now is thinking seriously about running for public office.
"I'm interested in voicing the opinions of some of our citizens, Hispanics especially," said Erick Sanchez, who is not related to Tony Sanchez. "And in getting people to vote. And especially to represent my district and get the views out there."
Erick Sanchez says he benefited from attending the Hispanic Political Academy. "It did good things for me," he said. "I realized that it (politics) is something I want to get into. I learned a lot from it."
The Hispanic population is quickly growing in the Las Vegas Valley, where one in five residents now have Latin roots. The Mexican government recently announced it is opening a consular office in Las Vegas to serve the needs of the community's expanding Mexican population.
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