yahoo | After two days of meetings at the
Republican Governors Association conference this week, New Mexico Gov.
Susana Martinez heard a lot about the party's need to reach new
constituencies--particularly women and ethnic minorities--but few
specifics about how.
As a Republican governor of
Mexican descent who won all but four counties in a Democratic state,
Martinez has ideas for how the party can reach voters who traditionally
support Democrats. But it's going to take some work--and a touch of
humility--from her colleagues.
"Republicans need to stop making
assumptions, and they need to start talking to younger people, people
of color, and ask them--not talk to them--ask
them, What is it that we can do better? How do we earn your vote? How
do we earn the ability for you to see that we can be the party that
will make your life better and that of your children?" Martinez said in
an interview after the conference here. "But we can't be the ones that
come and tell them how things are going to be and how we have all the
solutions."
President Barack Obama in 2012
expanded his lead among Hispanics, black voters, Asians and women,
according to exit polling, leaving many Republicans wondering what they
need do to adapt to the nation's rapidly shifting demographics.
The topic has dominated much of
the party's post-election soul searching. Some have placed part of the
blame on the Republican nominee, Mitt Romney, who wrote off nearly half
the electorate as inevitable Obama voters when he told donors at a
closed-door fundraiser last spring that 47 percent of the population
would support Obama "no matter what." Martinez criticized Romney's
comments when they were reported in September, and on Wednesday
reiterated that she found them "ridiculous."
"It's a ridiculous statement to
make. You want to earn the vote of every single person you can earn,
whether they be someone who relies on," she said. "Why would you ever
write off 47 percent?"
0 comments:
Post a Comment