The battle in Washington over reforming health care has been in the headlines for months, and Latino voters, like the rest of America, expect to see results. But as a poll released yesterday by Impremedia, Latino Decisions and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation shows, even success in passing health-care reform won't let President Obama and the Democrats off the hook with Latinos for their promise to fix the immigration system.
Of the 1000 registered Latino voters surveyed, 84% consider it “important, very important or extremely important” that immigration reform is passed before the 2010 midterm elections. That's almost equal to the amount, 86%, of Latino voters who consider health-care reform important.
In an article about the poll, La Opinión noted that 34% of respondents considered health-care reform “the most important issue” facing Latinos at the moment, while “only 14%” named immigration. But after months of debate over health care, this isn't surprising. Ultimately, Latinos need to see action on both.
On the campaign trail, President Obama promised to pass immigration reform during his first year in office, winning him strong support among Latinos that has continued through 2009. A poll conducted by Bendixen and Associates last May showed that 72% of Latinos trusted the president to keep that promise, and 83% trust that he will ultimately "do the right thing" on immigration.
The Impremedia poll shows that the president has maintained that trust so far: 74% of respondents approve of his performance. But they expect to see results next year. If immigration reform does not pass by November 2010, the poll says, 54% of Latinos would hold the president at least partly to blame --and 34% would vote against the Democrats in 2012.
Given how important Latinos were in bringing President Obama into office last fall, that isn't a result Democrats should dismiss lightly.
Some pundits and politicians have used the difficult battle over health care and the struggling economy as excuses to delay action on immigration. But Frank Sharry, executive director of America's Voice, cautioned that as this poll demonstrates, Latino voters may have higher expectations for politicians than those politicians have for themselves:
“The stakes are clear. Immigration continues to be a defining issue for Latino voters. They expect that promises will be kept and that reform is on its way. Like all Americans, Latino voters want their lawmakers to address the big challenges of our time, including health care reform, fixing the economy, and passing sensible immigration reform. But these voters also have little patience for Washington’s excuses for inaction in the face of these challenges. They believe lawmakers should walk and chew gum at the same time.”
Note: Cross-posted at America's Voice.