Her name is enough to win the Hispanic vote. Plus, John Sanchez won the GOP nomination for Lt. Gov so Martinez/Sanchez on the ballot and campaign signs is like the doublemint gum of vote leaching.
Immigration is actually not a deal breaker in NM. Our border is very small compared to the other three states and while we are majority Hispanic, it's almost entirely native Hispanic that predates the Mexican-American War. We don't have very large immigrant populations. Combined with the poor economy and our liberal laws on drivers licenses are really the only attraction a Mexican illegal immigrant would have to the state.
The two big issues in state right now are our high school dropout rate and drunk driving.
Where are the really liberal Hispanic voters? I've got NYC, CA, and C FL. Am I missing anywhere? I thought the Rio Grande Valley was more McCain than average for Hispanic areas, but I will need to double check that.
CA Hispanics are fairly populist-leaning, actually. Part of the reason that social issues have very little salience in California.
