|
*** PRESS CONFERENCE ***
ONE ARIZONA REAFFIRMS COMMITMENT TO RESPONSIBLE VOTER ENGAGEMENT EFFORTS
Refutes allegations of improper handling of voter registration forms; announces new plans to drive Arizona Latinos to the polls on Tuesday
WHAT: Representatives of ONE Arizona partner organizations will speak publicly at a news conference today about outrageous and phony allegations that the group of 10 non-profit organizations is trying to register unqualified Latino voters to vote in the Nov. 2 General Election.
“ONE Arizona is working hard to expand the Latino electorate in Arizona and build a more inclusive democracy,” said Francisco Heredia, spokesperson for ONE Arizona. “These allegations are a baseless attempt to intimidate and silence Latino voters. Citizen Latinos are just as American as other Arizonans and they have every right to participate in this country’s democratic process by exercising their right to vote in November and in the years to come.”
ONE Arizona has encouraged more than 22,000 citizen Latinos to register to vote for the first time. The group’s efforts have also added more than 43,000 registered voters to the permanent vote-by-mail list. These registration numbers demonstrate the potential that Latino voters have to influence elections and offset bigotry aimed at undocumented immigrants, the Latino community as a whole, and other minority and disenfranchised groups across the state.
ONE Arizona has been falsely accused of voter fraud in Yuma County by anonymous bloggers in postings widely circulated in the blogosphere. The Yuma County Recorder’s Office stated publicly that claims of fraudulent voter registration by ONE Arizona and Mi Familia Vota – a coalition member – are not true.
With less than six days until the Nov. 2 General Election, ONE Arizona will also launch a new campaign to instill voter pride and encourage Latinos to cast their ballots next week.
WHEN: Wednesday, Oct. 27 at 11 a.m.
WHERE: Arizona State Capitol, Senate Lawn, 1700 West Washington, Phoenix
SPEAKERS: Members of the media will have the opportunity to hear from:
Ø Francisco Heredia, Arizona State Director, Mi Familia Vota;
Ø Jennifer Allen, Executive Director, Border Action Network;
Ø Linda Brown, Executive Director, Arizona Advocacy Network;
Ø Rev. Phil Reller of the SW Conference United Church of Christ; and
Ø Esther Duarte, first-time voter and student at Arizona State University.
WHO: ONE Arizona is a non-partisan partnership dedicated to voter registration to bring about full electoral participation by the Latino Community. The ONE Arizona membership includes Arizona Advocacy Network, Arizona Center for Empowerment, Border Action Network, Democracia USA, Mi Familia Vota Education Fund, Southwest Conference of the United Church of Christ, Protecting Arizona’s Family Coalition Educational Fund, Promise Arizona, Central Arizonans for a Sustainable Economy, and Tonatierra Community Development Institute. For more information, visit www.onearizona.org.
# # #
|
