A new poll of 1,605 registered Latino voters sponsored by the Washington Post and Univision shows Sen. John Kerry (D.-Mass.) with a 60%-to-30% lead over President Bush in that community. The majority of Hispanics surveyed disapprove of how Bush is handling the economy and the Iraq War. The poll suggests that Bush, who took 35% of the Hispanic vote in 2000, has made no inroads with Hispanics through his strategy of offering amnesty to illegal aliens, despite the efforts of Karl Rove and other Republican strategists.
However, the Post says, "there were some signs in the poll that suggest the GOP has begun to make additional inroads among Hispanic voters, but opposition to Bush's policies appears to be an obstacle to more significant growth. A third of all Latino Republicans say they were once Democrats, while few Republicans have switched allegiance. And an increasing share of wealthier Hispanics identify with the GOP than in the past."
