Tucson CitizenDemocratic presidential hopefuls, including Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry and former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, have yet to persuade a large segment of U.S. Hispanics to back a Democrat in next year's election, a national poll released Wednesday shows. ---
The two conservative Hispanic organizations commissioned the poll as part of a yearly survey that tracks Hispanic opinions on a variety of public policy issues. It was conducted in English and Spanish and included telephone interviews with 1,000 Hispanics.
Thirty-one percent of the Hispanics surveyed said they would vote to re-elect President Bush if an election were held today between Bush and a "Democratic candidate." The generic Democrat received 43 percent Hispanic support. More than 18 percent said they were undecided.
In 2000, Bush garnered 35 percent of the Hispanic vote. Former Vice President Al Gore got 62 percent. ---
"People know him (Bush) by name and they know his administration's record and he still comes out with only 31 percent of support," said Tony Welch, a spokesman for the Democratic National Committee. "Republicans ought to be shaking in their boots." ---
Ironically, a Democrat not running in next year's presidential race - New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton - would pose the biggest headache for Bush. The poll found that Hispanics heavily favored Clinton over Bush by 16 percentage points. ---
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