U.S. elections 2020
(Photo : Reuters Connect)

As the number of White Americans participating in the upcoming 2020 U.S. elections decline, efforts are allegedly being made to suppress the Latinos' right to vote. Hispanic groups across the country are now fighting to stop these efforts. 

The Role of Latinos in the 2020 U.S. Elections

The 2020 Presidential elections will be happening barely five months from now. The Latinos and the black community are expected to play a very important role as they are the first and second biggest minority groups in the country. 

According to the Pew Research Centre, there are around 32 million registered eligible voters from the Latino community, surpassing the black community which has 30 million eligible voters, for the first time in the U.S. elections. 

However, either the Latino community is the biggest minority group or not, the picture is very clear that whoever from the Presidential candidates wins the heart of the Latino community will have a hope to be the country's next president. 

Efforts to Suppress Latinos to Vote 

As the election nears, there were many efforts to court the Latino or Hispanic community. In fact, Vice-President Mike Pence launched the "Latinos for Trump" coalition to unite the community to support Pres. Trump in the upcoming election. 

However, it was also found out that there were many efforts made to suppress the Latino community to vote in the upcoming election. An example of this is in the Dodge City in the state of Kansas where the polling location that served around 13,000 voters was changed just in a short notice. 

This action of the Ford County worried the Latinos. Dodge City is comprised of 60 percent of its total population and most of them are working in the meatpacking plants. According to the County, the action made was due to the construction but many were skeptical.

Hispanic Groups Fight Over the Suppression

What happened in Dodge City is just an example of the many tactics to suppress Latinos and Blacks to vote. It is expected that many suppressions are underway most especially that the number of White Americans is starting to decline. 

It is for this reason that the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Kansas and the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) of Kansas sued the County for changing the polling locations. However, a federal judge dismissed the case. 

Arturo Vargas, president of NALEO Educational Fund, said that state governments are keeping people from voting in different ways. It includes requiring voters to have a specific photo or to purge voting rolls. There were instances as well voters were discouraged by cutting down the voting period early.

Vargas also said that more lawsuits will be filed that are related to as the 2020 U.S. election nears. ACLU and LULAC are the leading groups in the country that should ensure minority will have fair access during the election. 

Moreover, LULAC filed a lawsuit last month against Texas officials. The oldest Hispanic organization argued that the state's vote-by-mail policies violate the constitution.