Susana Martinez: Representing Latinas At Republican National Convention
By Veronique de Miguel, Voxxi
Susana Martinez, New Mexico and the nation’s first Latina governor, will be one of the featured speakers at the Republican National Convention which begins tomorrow in Tampa, Florida, after being delayed one day by Tropical Storm Isaac.
The road to the Convention has been a long one for Martinez, who started out as a Democratic prosecutor in New Mexico. In the mid-1990s, she changed her membership to the Republican Party and was elected governor in 2010. From that moment on, Martinez has focused on fiscal and education reformand also has made her position on illegal immigration, the Hispanic community and civil rights, loud and clear.
Here is her stance on some of the most relevant topics:
Illegal immigration
When Susana Martinez won the general election in November 2010, one element of her platform was to secure the United State/Mexico border from undocumented immigrants.
Early in 2011, she signed an executive order revoking sanctuary status for undocumented immigrants who commit crimes in New Mexico. Martinez also promised to revoke drivers licenses for undocumented immigrants who commit repeated traffic violations, but has thus far been unable to push the new rule through the state legislature.
Legislature
Education reform and child abuse prevention have been central themes in Martinez’s administration. She pushed for an expansion of Katie’s Law, which requires that law-enforcement officials obtain DNA samples from all suspects booked on felony charges. In addition, Martinez also supported and signed a bill that assigns schools the grades of A to F based on student achievement.
Economy
Martinez supports a balanced budget and lower government spending. “You know, (former governor Bill) Richardson left me with the largest deficit in the history of New Mexico—$450 million,” Martinez told Human Events.
By the end of her second budget year, Martinez boasted that her state had a balanced budget plus a $200 million surplus. Moreover, unemployment has fallen to 6.7 percent “and in some parts of the state, it’s below 4 percent.” And, she is proud to say, “We did not raise a single tax.”
Civil rights
Martinez tows the party line on civil rights. She is opposed to elective abortion and in favor of reinstating the death penalty in New Mexico, which was abolished in the Richardson administration. She is opposed to same sex marriage and civil unions.
Hispanic community
Martinez supports the Hispanic community, at least those who have legal residency. She insists that Hispanics in New Mexico want the same things in life that everybody else does, including a job, an opportunity to make a better living and a quality education for their children.
At some point, Martinez questioned Mitt Romney’s comments on “self-deportation,” by exclaiming in public, “What the heck does that mean? I have no doubt Hispanics have been alienated during this campaign. But now there’s an opportunity for Gov. Romney to have a sincere conversation about what we can do and why.”
Governor Martinez told Human Events that she strongly believes Republicans have lost voters among Hispanic Americans by “checking off a town and saying they’ll never vote Republican so I’m not going. That’s a bad idea. You show up and your message has to be the same as it is everywhere else. Look, I was willing to go places where no Republicans had gone, I was honest with voters, and I followed up on my promises.”
Influencing the Hispanic vote?
Susana Martinez will not be the only woman speaking at the Republican National Convention. South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, the first female governor of her state, will also speak and former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, the first black female to hold that position, is also scheduled to speak. Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin will also use her convention role to try to close the gender gap that persists between Obama and Romney.
But Gov. Martinez is getting a prime-time speaking slot at the Convention in Tampa. She will take the stage immediately before the convention’s keynote address, giving her a spot traditionally reserved for Party stars.
“They’re showcasing Susana Martinez as a conservative governor who is both Hispanic and female,” New Mexico political analyst Brian Sanderoff explained to the Albuquerque Journal.
“We are thrilled that Governor Susana Martinez will be speaking at the Republican National Convention,” said RNC spokesperson Alexandra Franceschi. “As the first Latina Governor, she is one of the many Hispanic rising stars of the Republican Party. Her message of job creation, reducing government spending and putting our economy first will be well received by all Americans across the country.”
Securing a bigger bloc of the female vote is clearly a priority for Republicans, who hope that Martinez will appeal to Latina women, a massive group that four years ago voted for Obama. Her hardline on immigrants crossing from Mexico will help her appeal to those concerned with securing the U.S.’s southern border, yet will likely turn off many Latinos.
This article was first published in Voxxi.
Veronique de Miguel is a bilingual freelance writer.
[Photo courtesy martineztransition.com]