Latino clout in Congress appears to stay consistent
WASHINGTON — Latino political clout stayed steady in the new Congress that convened this week following the election of five new Hispanic House members and one senator.
The 112th Congress has 26 Latino members, less than the 27 who served for the past two years but a substantial increase from the 19 Latinos in Congress a decade ago, according to records of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO).
All told, there will be 17 Democrats and seven Republicans of Hispanic heritage in the House, along with Sens. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and Bob Menendez, D-N.J.
Early indications are that the lawmakers will likely vote along party lines on hot-button immigration issues, officials said Friday.
Regional differences
Rep. Charlie Gonzalez, D-San Antonio, chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, said there is more than ethnicity that will determine how Latino lawmakers vote.
"You have Latinos from Idaho and Washington State. You are going to see regional differences. That will define these members, not just their ethnicities," Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez and Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., with the Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute, said Latinos in both parties would work to address issues important to not only the Hispanic community, but to all Americans.
The five new Latino House members include two from Texas: Rep. Francisco Canseco, R-San Antonio, and Rep. Bill Flores, R-Bryan. Flores, as well as Rep. Jaime Herrera, R-Wash., and Rep. Raul Labrador, R-Idaho, do not come from Latino-majority congressional districts.
Arturo Vargas, of NALEO, said this demonstrated that Latinos have broad appeal across all ethnicities and communities.
An American first
Canseco, a San Antonio banker who defeated Rep. Ciro Rodriguez, D-San Antonio, ran on a border security platform in a congressional district that includes 800 miles of U.S.-Mexico border.
Now in Congress, Canseco describes immigration reform as a Democratic issue.
"I represent a lot of Hispanics in my district. We are 65 percent," Canseco said, "and I don't think you can get more Hispanic than me."
Canseco said his parents were both born in Mexico and became American citizens in the 1950s. He was raised in South Texas and is a fluent Spanish-speaker.
But he said he is an American first, and will vote for what is best for the country.
Flores, who defeated Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, in a Republican-leaning district sandwiched between Dallas and College Station, is a ninth generation Texan.
He said he is opposed to DREAM Act legislation that Congress considered last year.
That bill - the Development, Relief and Education of Alien Migrants Act - would have granted a protected status for roughly 1.2 million foreign-born immigrants, brought here illegally, after serving two years in the military or completion of two years of college. It also provided eventual citizenship.
Border security
Flores said that would give illegal immigrants who qualified an unfair advantage for citizenship over those seeking status through already established procedures.
"Everyone has to be treated fairly," Flores said.
As far as overall reform, Flores said "any conversation about immigration has to start with border security."
Vargas said that the 26 Latino members of Congress are not in proportion to the 15 percent of the population that Latinos represent.
Recent Census figures show Hispanics will gain more congressional clout in Congress after legislative redistricting this year.
"In time, demographics will catch up with the electorate," Vargas said.