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Post-election, Latinos in Wisconsin looking for immigration reform

The Latino vote in the battleground state of Wisconsin was critical nationally in helping to re-elect President Obama, with 65% of Latinos supporting him in the state, according to a report released last week by by the Pew Hispanic Center entitled, “Latino Voters in the 2012 Election.”

In Wisconsin, Voces de la Frontera Action organized 250 volunteers in the past month leading up to the election and successfully mobilized Latino voters to re-elect President Obama and elect Tammy Baldwin to the US Senate.

According to a news release from Voces de la Frontera, volunteers knocked on 24,278 doors, and made 9,465 calls to Latino voters in the cities of Milwaukee, Kenosha, Green Bay, Lake Geneva, and Walworth County.

In Walworth County, Delavan, Zenda, Dairen and Lake Geneva have some of the highest percentages of Hispanic populations in the state, according to a report by database collector ZipAtlas.

Wisconsin reflects a national trend, with Latinos representing the youngest and fastest growing ethnic group, and demonstrating their electoral power. According to the Pew Hispanic report, nationally, Latino voters were decisive in the presidential election, with 71% of Latino voters voting for Obama, while 27% voted for Romney.

“Now is the time for bold and visionary action on federal immigration reform. The President’s move to provide relief to hundreds of thousands undocumented youth through deferred action, was instrumental in the remarkable Latino voter turnout that we saw on election night. But this support comes with a mandate,” said Christine Neumann-Ortiz, executive director of Voces de la Frontera.

“We demand that President Obama and the US Congress prioritize federal immigration reform that keeps families together, protects workers rights, and provides a path to citizenship. It is within the power of the President to hold ICE accountable to their enforcement priorities and stop criminalizing immigrants that present no danger to society- and to grant meaningful relief to those facing deportation.”

In national exiting polls by CNN, 77% of Latino voters said that immigrants should be offered a chance to apply for legal status. Among all voters, 65% said these immigrants should be offered a chance to apply for legal status.