With the 2012 Republican National
Convention just around the corner, the GOP is making a concerted
effort to re-vamp its image from the rich, white guys' party to one
that is more inclusive of Hispanics, blacks and women.
The United States is undergoing a major demographic shift as the
Hispanic population explodes and minority births this year for the
first time surpassed those of whites. In order to survive and
thrive, the GOP knows it must do more to reach out to groups not
typically associated with it.
Besides rallying around presidential challenger Mitt Romney, the
convention aims to "show that the GOP is not just a party of old,
white men. It is a party of diversity," said Republican strategist
Ford O'Connell.
"There's a real focus this time on Hispanics and women, and the
party recognizes that they cannot continue to win at the ballot box
if they're not speaking to Hispanics and college-educated single
women," he said.
Indeed, the event will focus on Latinos more than any Republican
national conventions did in history, with a number of prominent
Latino leaders speaking during pivotal time slots. That marks a
major shift from the 2008 event, which was blasted as featuring an
overwhelming majority of white speakers.
Slated to speak is Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, whose Latino
heritage could help peel off supporters from a group that often
votes Democratic.
Rubio will take the high-profile slot just before Romney and is
set to introduce the former Massachusetts governor before Romney
formally accepts the GOP nomination.
Hispanics voted for Obama in 2008 over his Republican rival by a
margin of more than 2 to 1. In 2004, the GOP fared better with
Latinos, with former President George W. Bush garnering 44 percent
of the vote.
Mia Love, mayor of Saratoga Springs, Utah, is also slated to
speak at the convention next Tuesday evening. Love, the daughter of
Haitian immigrants, is running for Congress. If she wins, she will
be the first black Congresswoman in the GOP.
Love, who has landed a prime time spot to address the convention,
is one of the three African Americans to make an address at the
convention, including former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez will take the stage before
keynote speaker Chris Christie, the governor of New Jersey.
Martinez, the first female governor in her state and the first
female Hispanic governor in the United States, is taking a coveted
time slot reserved for the party's rising stars, such as Mitt Romney
in 2004.
Puerto Rico Governor Luis Fortuno is also slated to speak at the
event, as is Nikki Haley, the first female governor of South
Carolina.
But the question remains whether the GOP can garner the type of
long-term commitment from minorities that it needs to be successful
in the decades to come.
Jennifer Marsico, senior research associate at the American
Enterprise Institute, said many minority groups' political
identification is fairly set and hard to move, such as African
American support for the Democratic Party.
"But among certain small or expanding minority groups in the
U.S., there is more malleability when it comes to political
affiliation," she said.
"Speakers like Martinez and Rubio, both very popular in their
respective home states of New Mexico and Florida, could definitely
help in shoring up votes from the Hispanic community," she said.
"However, it is hard to say for sure whether such votes would end up
turning into party loyalty."
Darrell M. West, director of governance studies at the Brookings
Institution, said future demographic trends are on the side of
Democrats if the GOP continues to push what he called an agenda that
alienates women and minorities.
It is important to have younger leaders speaking at the
convention who come from diverse backgrounds and do not reinforce
existing stereotypes about the party, West said.
Any convention must highlight up-and-coming leaders who can speak
on behalf of where the party plans to go in the future, he said.
"Republicans have a number of young stars who will be articulate
spokespersons for the 21st century GOP," he said.
The Hispanic vote is often viewed as monolithic, although there
is much diversification within the demographic itself, analysts
said. For example, attempting to garner support from a Mexican
American in the southwest is a more different task than appealing to
a Cuban American in Florida.
Some analysts said more Spanish language ads are needed to tap
Hispanic voters, as Spanish-language media is growing rapidly.
