California: The GOP’s Latino problem

Abel Maldonado, the Republican iconoclast most recently famous for his brief stint as California’s appointed lieutenant governor and his unsuccessful run for Congress last year, is making noises about running for governor in 2014 against Jerry Brown.

Will putting up a Latino face for the state’s top office reverse more than two decades of rejection for the GOP by the fast-growing Latino community? Can even a Latino Republican win Latino votes in California? Both history and the data tell us not to bet on it. …

Some voter blocs in California tend to be swing voters; not Latinos. A huge majority of California Latinos vote generically Democratic, whether the Democratic candidate is strong or weak, pretty or ugly, wins or loses. [cont.]

Garry South, Los Angeles Times

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