El Voto Latino growth is slow, but promising

A new Latino voter registration drive has only drawn 88 new voters in the past couple months, but it was enough to get the attention of the French.

Radio France Internationale interviewed members of El Voto Latino for a story about the American immigration debate, said Roberto Córdova, the founder of the Latino group.

"It was out of nowhere," he said of the interview request from the radio group's Washington bureau chief. "We're just little country folks doing our thing out here."

Córdova said El Voto Latino is a work in progress, and volunteers are learning the difficulty of their mission. To get 88 new voters registered in two months is a start, but everyone is realizing how much work it takes, Córdova said.

"We know this is a long-range project that will be ongoing for years to come," he said. "Check with me in a year to find out what we have done."

The group aims to register and get 5,000 Latino voters to the polls by the 2008 election, Córdova said. Initially, the group wanted to get that many voters by this year's election, but that's not likely now.

"We'll just get whoever we get," he said.

Volunteers were trained through the Secretary of State's office, and the mission is to register legal American citizens who have Latino backgrounds.

The French radio reporter was in Denver doing a story about the immigration debate in Colorado and came to Greeley because the station heard about El Voto Latino, Córdova said. She recorded a meeting and walked around with volunteers trying to get new voters. The segment will be broadcast in 19 different languages.

The group is attracting attention from Weld County government groups, too.

The Weld County Commissioners issued a proclamation recently declaring support for nonpartisan voter registration groups, including El Voto Latino. The proclamation also gave a nod to the League of Women Voters.

"We support any effort that's not partisan to register people to vote," said Commissioner Mike Geile.

The Greeley Human Relations Commission wrote a letter to the Tribune also endorsing El Voto Latino, and Córdova recently spoke to the Greeley City Council asking for a proclamation from that body.

The group considered making an appearance at Saturday's Democratic state assembly, but Córdova decided it might not be the best use of time.

"That's only because people at an assembly are probably going to be already registered to vote," he said with a laugh.

Any individuals, businesses, agencies or organizations are welcome to help in the effort to register Latino voters, regardless of background or political affiliation. The group can use anyone's help, Córdova said.

"It's a massive effort, especially for a bunch of grassroots folks who have never attempted anything this huge before," he said.

El Voto Latino has a new Web site: www.elvotolatino.org