By Karen Branch-Brioso
If Hispanic voters turn out in the numbers predicted in next Tuesday’s presidential election, the winner may be pressured into tackling the politically prickly issue of immigration reform in his first year in office whether he wants to or not, an immigrant advocate predicted Wednesday.
“Many of us are predicting the impact of the Latino vote will be unprecedented,” said Frank Sharry, executive director of America’s Voice, which is pushing for federally sponsored immigration reform for an estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants living in the United States.
The numbers in which they turnout on Election Day “will show that Latinos generally and Latino immigrants, specifically, as well as other immigrant communities, want respect, not to be demonized and will demand reform. I suspect that we may even see a spirited legislative battle beginning in the fall of 2009,” Sharry said.
Democratic candidate Barack Obama and Republican candidate John McCain have both backed comprehensive immigration reform and say they will address the issue within the first year of their presidencies.
Both candidates have also supported the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act (also known as the DREAM Act), which would allow many undocumented high school students who have lived in the United States since childhood a path to legal permanent residency. The legislation, which is limited to students who want to go to college or serve in the U.S. military upon graduation, hasn’t gained traction in Congress.
