Tag Archives: elections

Vote from Anywhere

  By Maegan La Mala | August 5, 2008 - 4:47 pm |
Comments Off

As I am currently abroad, and my politics swing far to the left (had you not noticed?) this apparently means that I am getting updates from Democrats Abroad, a non-profit organization trying to get out the important but too ignored expat vote for these elections.

I’m not really a Democrat (if interested email me and ask why…too tedious to indulge myself here) but definitely not a Republican, so I submit to you Democrats Abroad’s latest ad.

Remember when Gwyneth Paltrow raised a stink by touting her ex-pat status and criticizing the U.S.? Well all you flag wavers can bash her again as she is reinstating her expat (albeit responsible voter) status with this ad:

The ad’s not all that but the message is sound. No matter where you are, vote. No matter if you are like me — suspicious of voting protocol and fairness — just VOTE.

Via / Democrats Abroad

Post to Twitter

Central Florida Latinos Focal Point for Candidates

  By Maegan La Mala | August 1, 2008 - 10:51 am |
Comments Off

images34.jpgIf a new survey is to be believed, Central Florida is where Barack Obama needs to be spending much of his $20 million Latino campaign budget. According to a new study by the non-partisan Democracia USA organization, those votes are up for grabs as the population tends to swing both ways (politically speaking):

“It’s something very interesting, very special here in Orlando and its surroundings: the Hispanic voting population isn’t defined. One moment the majority votes Republican and the next it votes Democrat,” Jorge Mursuli, president of the non-partisan Democracia USA organization, told Efe.

According to Mursuli, the Hispanic population of the city of Orlando has doubled over the past year, making the area a hotspot for swiping up votes, not to mention the fact that

“Florida has the largest number of electoral votes among the states where they talk about the importance of the Hispanic vote,” Mursuli said, apparently assuming that the Republicans stand little chance of wresting California – which leads the nation both in electoral votes and Latino population – away from the Democrats.

I hate to be naive, but I similarly don’t see Republicans standing a snowball’s chance in Hades in getting California. Obama needs to pull the mariachi ads and move out East, where he really needs to drum up support.

Via / Hispanic Business

Post to Twitter

The New Yorker Vs. Obama

  By Maegan La Mala | July 14, 2008 - 9:11 am |
2 Comments

741d961d74444c9d2b327841939b2715.jpgI’m currently out of the country and because of this, my reaction to the image you see here is probably more dramatic than yours. Maybe this has been all over CNN and you are numb to it? Maybe there is some other meaning behind this that I am missing? All I can say is that I am floored to see the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate, Illinois Senator Barack Obama and his wife Michelle depicted as “terrorists” (yes, read that with the quotation marks it deserves) on the cover of the latest issue of The New Yorker magazine.

Both the Obama campaign and the McCain campaign are denouncing the cartoon. Reports SwampPolitics.com:

“The New Yorker may think, as one of their staff explained to us, that their cover is a satirical lampoon of the caricature Sen. Obama’s right-wing critics have tried to create,” Obama spokesman Bill Burton said in a statement, reported by Politico. “But most readers will see it as tasteless and offensive. And we agree.”

“We completely agree with the Obama campaign, it’s tasteless and offensive,” McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds said in a statement.

As mentioned in the Obama camp’s quote, the magazine calls the cover a “satire”, meant to call attention to the right’s fear mongering tactics.

What do you think?

Via / Chicago Tribune’s The Swamp

Post to Twitter

Help Get VL to the DNC

  By Maegan La Mala | June 9, 2008 - 9:53 am |
Comments Off

DNCC_logo_dnc2008_1_500.jpgIt’s been a long and tough road over the past 3 years fighting to get into events that are important to our readers and to be able to provide you with coverage of the topics that mainstream media ignores. From the Latin Grammies to presidential debates, VL has been there covering it all live and in person. But the biggest event for us and perhaps even for our nation this year is the Democratic National Convention, which will take place in August in Denver. We’ve been credentialed for the event and are ready to cover it for you, but there is still an obstacle. As a non-traditional, independent media outlet, the costs associated with the event are less than accessible for us. We are still in the process of looking for a sponsor for our ongoing DNC coverage, as expenses will be high. If you are an advertiser and interested in becoming a presenting sponsor of VivirLatino’s exclusive Latino coverage of the Democratic National Convention, please contact us at info@vivirlatino.com.

And to our readers, any little bit will help us make this happen. As you might already know, we will also be taking a student correspondent to the event to help cover the issues across generations and ensure that the DNC is reported on from multiple points of view. If you would like to contribute to making this dream a reality, consider donating whatever you can to our DNC fundraiser by clicking on the ChipIn button on the right side of the homepage.

As always, thanks for reading and we look forward to covering one of history’s most important conventions this year just for you.

Sincerely,

The VL Team

Post to Twitter

Romney’s Out of the Race, Should Dems Tremble?

  By Maegan La Mala | February 7, 2008 - 1:13 pm |
6 Comments

t1home.romneyad.ap.jpgRomney’s out and I’m sad. Not because I don’t despise him (because I do) or because I was excited about some religious diversity in the White House (I was, but not at the expense of having him as our President…shudder to think). It’s because McCain is apparently so “liberal” (read not doesn’t come off as a right-wing nutbar like Huckabee) that he can actually prove to be a threat to the Democrats in the race for the White House. “On the fencers” and other moderates might oscillate between McCain and the Democratic candidate based on issues. Independents might gravitate towards him because he hasn’t walked the Republican party line (and indeed, is hated by most in his party). And (is it possible?) could Democrats — particularly former supporters of John Edwards — be swayed into voting off-ticket because they don’t feel any affinity towards Obama or Clinton? Will Latinos turn to him because of his immigration bill stance?

I think it’s possible and we should be very afraid. What do you think? Let us know in the comments.

Via / NPR

Post to Twitter

Super Tuesday: The View from Here

  By Maegan La Mala | February 5, 2008 - 7:52 pm |
Comments Off

I’m off to my polling place folks, and I’m hoping I won’t have face any of the irregularities that are being constantly reported both here and in Southern California when I get there. Here in San Francisco (video of our Super Tuesday above) and other parts of the Bay Area, many voters who aren’t registered with any political party (like myself) have been told that they aren’t allowed to vote in the Democratic primary. Not true!

See you guys later as the returns come in!

Via / SF Gate

Post to Twitter

Super Tuesday: California Voters Faced with Problems

  By Maegan La Mala | February 5, 2008 - 6:36 pm |
2 Comments

chp_vote.jpgHere in California, it appears that not is all going smoothly at the polls. The Los Angeles Times is reporting that in L.A many voters were met with problems ranging from having to cast provisional ballots to being asked to show identification:

Silver Lake voter Pedro Mas Mayor was upset when he was asked to show identification at his polling place. Mayor, 69, a naturalized citizen who has lived in the United States since 1966, said this was the first time he’d ever been asked to show identification when voting.

“I told them it’s the law that you aren’t supposed to ask,” Mayor said. “I said, ‘Are you sure?’ She said, ‘Yes, you have to.’ She insisted. So I showed my ID and said, ‘I need a ballot.’ ”

Mayor said poll workers at the Sunset Boulevard Free Clinic were also asking white voters for their IDs. “They were asking everybody. I was a little upset, but I was able to vote,” he said.

Interesting that the L.A. Times notes that the voter was a naturalized citizen. Why is that relevant?

The Times also reports that many had to wait for polling places that did not open on time, and didn’t begin taking voters in until 5 hours after the scheduled time.

Are you having trouble voting? Let us know in the comments below!

Via / L.A. Times

Post to Twitter

Guatemala Has a New President

  By Maegan La Mala | January 15, 2008 - 11:07 am |
Comments Off

Pag-16-06-11-07.jpgGuatemala swore in a new president yesterday; Alvaro Colom, a social democrat, defeated a scary army general back in November, and officially began his term with a pledge to help the less fortunate of his country:

“I thank God that Guatemala got the chance for the first time in 50 years to change to a social democratic government,” he said today after being sworn in. “I’m convinced that by giving to those who have the least, we will all have more.”

How many administrations have begun with just those words? Let’s hope Alvaro will keep his word. Guatemala faces serious issues many of which — like discrimination and violence — are age-old. On the topic of racism, Colom says he plans to govern Guatemala “with a Mayan face”.

Via / Bloomberg and AFP

Post to Twitter

What is the Iowa Caucus, Really?

  By Maegan La Mala | January 3, 2008 - 1:29 pm |
1 Comment

If you find yourself asking that question today, you aren’t the only one. WhyTuesday.org has an easy-to-understand video explanation:

Via / Why Tuesday?

Post to Twitter

The left wins in Bogota mayoral elections

  By Maegan La Mala | October 29, 2007 - 2:12 pm |
Comments Off

Nota9.jpgProgressives around Colombia are celebrating today the triumph of the left in Bogota’s municipal elections. Samuel Moreno of the Democratic Pole party won the spot as mayor (a.k.a. the second most powerful man in Colombia) despite the theatrics of president Alvaro Uribe’s counter-campaign. Columnist María Jimena Duzán of Colombia’s El Tiempo lays out how Uribe’s antics actually ended up producing more support for Moreno:

The flattening triumph of Samuel Moreno in the elections for Bogota’s mayor, aside from consolidating the Democratic Pole as the premiere political force in the capital, demonstrates that we Bogotanos don’t like the president sticking his nose into our business and telling us whom we should vote for. His intervention was so crude that it ended producing the opposite effect. In the end, this strategy took votes away from Peñalosa [the candidate Uribe endorsed].

(more…)

Post to Twitter