Latinos ‘hold the key to the White House’

The National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) welcomed respected national leaders such as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senator Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) to speak at its 25th annual conference. The National Leadership Luncheon kicked off with a $1 million donation to NALEO from State Farm Insurance Companies.

Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Senator Ken Salazar (D-Colo.) were met with a standing ovation when they took the stage to give their welcome address. Salazar thanked Reid for being a champion of Latinos and diversity but also reminded conference attendees that Latinos still had a long way to go. Menendez said the past year had been transformational with around 17 million Latinos eligible to vote and praised the record turnout for elections. Despite a bout of laryngitis, Pelosi took the stage and reminded the crowd that Latinos ‘hold the key to the White House.’

Reid said that this election was an opportunity for the Latino population to shape the country. He credited Puerto Rico for having the greatest percentage of their men and women serving America in the military compared to all the other states. Menendez mentioned that the first soldier to fall in the war on Iraq was a Latino and not even a U.S. citizen.

Clinton gave the closing remarks and made a call for more Latino elected officials. In reference to the more than 1.3 million Latinos who applied for naturalization, a number greater than the goal set by the ‘Ya Es Hora’ campaign, Clinton said America must honor its immigrant heritage and ‘start acting like America again.’