They speak español, but not with nosotros

Speaking to one of the fastest growing ethnic populations in their native idioma has become part of the bag of tricks used by aspiring políticos. Many of them end up sounding more like the late Frank Perdue did in commercials selling pollos than like serious contenders for public office seeking votes.

One exception is Rob Astorino, whose español is by far the most impressive I’ve heard by a white politician on the prowl for Latino votes. However, the Westchester County Executive and wannabe Governor’s efforts to connect with the more than 3.4 million Latinos in the state of New York weren’t helped last week in Rye Brook, where his Republican Party held its 2014 Convention.

The problem wasn't señor Astorino’s mastery of español; it was that there were barely any Latinos in the room to hear him. I counted no more than 30 Latino attendees at the two-day GOP gathering. There was even a breakaway room in which, under the auspices of the New York State Latino Republican Coalition, Chairman Rubén Estrada (click here for my recent interview with Estrada), held a two-hour meeting where he discussed nuts and bolts, including Latino inclusion within the party apparatus. Whether the group’s deliberations are taken seriously by the Republican leadership remains to be seen. I can tell you it doesn't look prometedor.

There was no effort made by the state’s GOP leaders for those few Latinos to be seen as part of their party. No pretense of inclusion. Not even minor roles in the convention proceedings. From the looks of this convention, Latinos appear to be as irrelevantes to the Republicans locally as they are nationally.

One would think that the Republican Party would be trying to get votes from some of the 845,000 Latinos that the National Association of Latino Elected Officials (NALEO) estimated were registered to vote in the 2012 presidential election. Of greater relevance, is that approximately 62 percent of Latino registered voters cast ballots during the 2010 gubernatorial election in New York. I guess the republicanos are so sure of their vote-garnering prowess that they don't need any Latino votes this fall.

It's as if Astorino’s own party is operating with the widely held view that he—along with the New York State GOP candidates for attorney general and comptroller—is a sacrificial electoral oveja at the altar of Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Or could it be that they really believe they have a shot at winning in November?

I don't want to bash the Republican Party, especially since they do that with masterful aplomb on their own.

But the reality is that Astorino's party doesn't have a single Latino among its 62 county party chairs.

That much they share with the other ruling party. The New York State Democratic Party, which counts among its ranks the vast majority of Latinos, doesn't have ni un Latino among its leaders. ¡Que falta de respeto!

That's right. In 2014, the party of Andrew Cuomo, Chuck Schumer, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Bill Clinton and the newly minted progressive pinup, Bill de Blasio, doesn't have a single Latino/a chairing any of their 62 county democratic organizations.

This glaring omission from the spheres of influence of the Democratic Party apparatus is, quite frankly, even more offensive than that by the Republicans.

At the State level there are 19 Latino members of the Legislature who are Democrats: 13 are in the Assembly and 6 in the Senate. There are 2 New York Latino members of the U.S. House of Representatives. 11 New York City Council members and one BP. All Democrats.

How Latino Democrats deal with this shameful, intentional exclusion from their party’s ranks will be watched by some of us when they convene on May 20 in Melville.

Will King Cuomo—whom I've never heard hablar español—as leader of the party give prominent roles to Latinos during the convention to mask their systemic exclusion, or will he dare shock us all and fill his lieutenant governor slot with a Latino/a as his 2014 running mate?

After all is said and done, Latinos appreciate the español effort. The políticos who take time to learn it may in fact feel they're doing something bueno. Got news for you muchachos: you're not connecting with nosotros.