The prestigious research house the Pew Hispanic Center released the results of a survey on Latino attitudes toward the war in Iraq, the economy and 2004 presidential election. It's a fascinating study, conducted in December, 2003 and January, 2004, enabling for a comparison of attitudes both before and after Sadaam's capture.
Some highlights of the study:
- There was a strong positive shift after Sadaam's capture in how Hispanics rate President Bush's handling of the war. For example, in December 32% approved of the way the president is "handling the situation in Iraq". This number increased to 47% in January.
- Over two-thirds feel that it is more important that the President focus on the economy rather than on the war on terrorism
- About half feel the Bush administration mislead the American pubic about the seriousness of the threat in Iraq
- 37% interviewed in January would prefer to see George Bush win the 2004 presidential election over a democratic candidate up ten points from December. There was a drop from 56% to 47% in the number saying they would a democratic candidate.
Another must read from the Pew Hispanic Center downloadable on the same page is their 2002 National Survey of Latinos. It's the definitive source on how Hispanics feel on a host of issues like language, identity and values.