Latino voters draw attention as organizers make final push in metro Atlanta

Community organizers in Norcross spent Monday delivering election-protection materials and working to get Hispanic and Latino voters to the polls.

Just over 82,000 Hispanic and Latino voters had cast early ballots statewide, according to the Georgia Secretary of State's office.  In Gwinnett County, they accounted for about 7% of early voting.

The turnout numbers cannot predict the election's outcome.  But Jerry Gonzalez, CEO of the GALEO Impact Fund, sees an engaged electorate.  "Latino voters are paying attention," Gonzalez said.  "We've had a tremendous amount of interest from community members that don't regularly participate in elections."

Elton Garcia-Castillo, civic participation field manager for Latino Community Fund Georgia, was delivering election-protection posters with hotline information to coalition partners preparing to monitor polling places Tuesday.

"We're going to work as poll monitors to observe the polling locations tomorrow for Election Day," Garcia-Castillo said.

His organization's outreach has included helping naturalized voters understand where and how to participate.  Canvassers have also collected surveys about the issues affecting voters' daily lives and what they want changed after the election.  "And so we've been seeing a lot of like, you know, affordability, cost of living is like super high," Garcia-Castillo said.

He also cited concerns about health care premiums.  For some voters, he said, those financial strains are becoming a reason to participate.  "We want to go and participate and vote because we want our elected officials to hear us," he said.

Gonzalez said affordability has long been a priority.  "Affordability issues have been at the top of the issues for Latinos for many, many years."

A shared heritage does not guarantee a shared political choice.  Gonzalez, however, expects Democrats to benefit.  "So I think we're going to see a strong Democratic showing here in Georgia," he said.

That is Gonzalez's prediction, not a conclusion established by early-voting data.  Georgia does not register voters by party, and voting records do not disclose which candidates people selected.

Gonzalez also expects more participation Tuesday, based on his organization's conversations with voters.  "Many Latinos love to vote on Election Day.  So they've been waiting to vote on Election Day," he said.  "We've been encouraging people to vote early in case there's any problems."

Gwinnett is Georgia's only county federally required to provide ballots and election materials in Spanish.  Gonzalez said his organization would monitor precincts and provide Spanish-language assistance across metro Atlanta.

For Garcia-Castillo, the final days of canvassing have brought encounters with voters who already cast ballots and were encouraging relatives to follow.

"And so we've been seeing a lot more of support and engagement," he said.

With the clock ticking, the final outreach offers one more opportunity to turn a growing metro Atlanta community into a stronger voice at the ballot box.

GALEO says voters who run into problems tomorrow can call the free, bilingual 1-888-VE-Y-VOTA (1-888-839-8682), the official Spanish-language hotline of the national Election Protection coalition. It runs from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. on Election Day.