Today is the last day to register if you want to vote in November. So, if you haven’t done it yet — now’s your last chance. We’re discussing the efforts to get people to register and vote in this election.
Two groups are becoming increasingly important in our neck-and-neck swing state. There are millions of dollars and countless volunteers on the ground in Arizona courting the Latino vote here.
Latino voters now make up a third of the state’s population, and more than 855,000 of them are expected at the polls. But when it comes to Black voters in Arizona, the story is about disenfranchisement. And what happens when a group feels their vote doesn’t matter.
Arizona Republic editorial page editor Elvia Díaz and columnist Greg Moore joined The Show to talk about the outreach. Díaz went out door-knocking recently with Mi Familia Vota and said it’s a tough job.
Full conversation
ELVIA DÍAZ: We went out as they do every single day in a very, very hot day in Phoenix. So I can tell you that it was miserable, and this is really nothing new. What surprised me here, this year, it's the intensity of what is being done.
You know, that you mentioned there in the intro, the millions of dollars that has been spent on this effort and the amount of people out, from paid workers to tons of volunteers across the state, not just here in Phoenix. I happened to go in a Phoenix neighborhood, but they are everywhere. They are targeting Pima County. They are also targeting another group, which is the Native Americans.
So it is happening everywhere, and it is happening aggressively. Something I haven't seen, I would say for a while, since SB 1070 or other waves of engagement, and I see it this year.
LAUREN GILGER: Yeah. Yeah. And they're not necessarily asking for voters to vote for one candidate or one issue. But it's part of, as you say, this massive effort to get Latino voters out in Arizona. As we're looking at the swing state, this very tight election, both campaigns are obviously trying to get that Latino vote. And it sounds like, Elvia, it's not necessarily a lock for Democrats anymore.
DÍAZ: Well, yes, absolutely. And that's what is happening. So yes, you are correct that this organization in particular Mi Familia Vota, and other organizations that I have come to, they're nonpartisan, and they are just providing.
But the campaigns themselves are being very aggressive, and there are separate efforts. I mentioned something like the Harris campaign has spent like $7 million dollars specifically targeting Latinos. And so they're doing it with TV and digital ads, but also knocking on doors. Those are very targeted, right? They are asking people to vote for Kamala Harris — or Donald Trump, because that campaign is also doing that kind of work. Rep. Ruben Gallego, for instance, has been incredibly aggressive targeting the Latino vote. He has gone to mega soccer games, doing some town halls in Spanish, all kinds of things to do it.
So, really again, what has impressed me is the magnitude and how big the effort is to really get the Latino vote. Because one, everyone knows that Latinos don't vote just one way, right? We run the gamut. And so it is impressive to see that it appears that both parties and a lot of candidates are finally understanding that.
GILGER: So then Greg, I want to turn to you and talk about the people that you talked to, about turning out: the Black vote in Arizona. It sounds like they're focusing on Gen Z and on voters who don't usually vote.
GREG MOORE: Yeah, which I think is pretty neat. The longer you're around everyday working-class Black people, the more you start to realize that there are folks who just would rather not participate in the system at all. There are people out there who are just like, “Look, this isn't for me. It's never been for me. I've never voted, I'm never gonna vote.” And there are folks out there who are actually looking to get those people to say, “Hey, listen, this is for you, but it's gonna take all of us.”
And the folks I spoke to are reaching out in some really interesting ways, particularly to get younger voters, millennials and Gen Z. They're going to the bar, they're going to the State Fair. They're just trying to meet people where they are. One activist I spoke to said, “Look, we're not trying to speak to folks who are already woke. Yes, we want them to vote, obviously. But we're trying to get people who are sleeping to be awake.” I thought that was a super interesting strategy.
GILGER: Talk a little bit about where that comes from, that sense of disenfranchisement among this community in particular. It sounds like it's pretty deep seated.
MOORE: Well, yeah, for sure. Take a look at a politician like (Sen.) Kyrsten Sinema, right? She's a Democrat, supposedly. And then she turns around and, and then doesn't do what people want her to do on voting rights, right? Or they'll say, "Look, we voted in Barack Obama, we voted in Joe Biden, but my life didn't change. So clearly the game is rigged, clearly these are two wings of the same bird. You know, the Democrats and Republicans say that they're different, but in reality, they're just trying to hold on to power for the super wealthy, the super rich."
What the activists are saying is, "Listen, we've got some successes that we can point to. And if you help us and then stay engaged after the election, we believe that your life can be different by working within the system." And it's a compelling argument. assuming people are, are open to hearing it.
GILGER: Are people open to hearing it?
MOORE: Yeah, some are. But the trick is you can't just parachute in and just argue with somebody the day you want them to register. The trick is you've got to kind of be embedded in it and to build some trust within that community before you start asking them to do anything. You gotta show up every day and you really do have to point to some successes.
There was one group I spoke with called One Arizona. It's an umbrella organization that actually started off as kind of like a Latino group in the wake of SB 1070, but it's since branched out in reaching out to, you know, Native American populations, Black populations, just anybody who's working class, working poor. And we know that those groups tend to be overrepresented by minorities. And they're saying, "Look, let me show you what we've done so far, and let me show you what we can do if we all stick together and continue to vote."
DÍAZ: And you know what? One of the things that I'm hearing from a lot of readers that don't like that, we are highlighting minorities, that "Why are are African Americans and Latinos special?"
And my reply is that no, we're not. However, we are not being paid attention to throughout the year and throughout the decades and through history. So we are like any other voter. Look how much money is being spent to try to convince Republican women, rural voters, working voters.
Why does anyone think that minorities don't need that kind of spending to encourage them to vote, to get them out and to really have a conversation and contact throughout the year, not just on Election Day or whenever the candidates need us to vote?
GILGER: It's really interesting. I want to ask you both this question in terms of issues, right? Like we assume Black voters might care about this issue. We assume Latino voters might care about this issue. But from the people you talk to, who are really trying to get these voters out to the polls this year, what are voters worried about?
DÍAZ: You know, that's the, the perfect word, Lauren. Assume. We must assume nothing, right? And there's no substitute than talking to voters. So you hear the candidates and you hear us in the media talk a lot about, for instance, border security, immigration. And yeah, to some folks that's very, very important. But I will say most of the people that I talk to, most of the emails that I get to from Latinos are not about immigration.
It's really about daily life, having a job, you know, how are they gonna pay for groceries, gas. All the stuff that you hear about reproductive rights seems to be important as well. So, it is not what we in the media and the candidates are saying. It's really just about making it on a daily basis.
MOORE: Yeah. Jobs, abortion, rent, affordable housing, inflation, groceries, gas prices. I'm with Elvia. Just everyday concerns. Policing. Everyday concerns.