Maryland Republicans hope efforts to recruit Hispanics are on track after a vote yesterday to sever ties with a group of outspoken Latino activists and form an alliance with a replacement organization.
At a convention in Annapolis, the state GOP decided to end its relationship with the Maryland Hispanic Republican Caucus, created by the party six months ago as a demonstration of inclusiveness.
In its place, the Hispanic Republicans of Maryland becomes the party's official outreach vehicle for the state's 300,000 to 400,000 Latinos, most of whom are Democrats.
The vote marked a victory for state Republican Chairman John Kane, who worked aggressively to marginalize the first caucus after its head, Jorge Ribas, criticized Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. for not hiring Hispanics for well-paying state jobs.
"A successful party must realize that the price of relevancy is discipline," Kane said.
Undaunted, Ribas sat quietly as his group lost its status, and said later that the caucus would not fold despite a lack of recognition. It would strive for the same voter registration and candidate recruitment goals as the replacement group, he said.
"It means nothing," Ribas said of the vote. "Being an auxiliary of the Maryland GOP is symbolic. ... We will continue to insist on the wisdom of appointing Hispanics to Cabinet-level positions. If there are no Hispanics sitting at the table in Governor Ehrlich's administration, Hispanics will not support the administration."
Ribas said his group has 300 members - 120 of whom paid dues - and is working to expand the GOP's Hispanic membership beyond the current estimate of 10,000 voters.
But Kane said he hoped to soon have a better accounting of Hispanic voters and registration goals. The new group, headed by Baltimore sign-maker Luis Borunda, has 200 members, said party executive director Eric M. Sutton.
"We're growing," Borunda said. Hispanics "have 4 percent of the population. ... We will become a viable economic and political force in the state."
Yesterday's vote appeared to end a dispute between Kane and Ribas, marked by inflammatory charges and countercharges, that threatened to damage a party looking to grow in status after Ehrlich's historic gubernatorial win last year.
Kane accused Ribas, a Montgomery County veterinarian and pathologist, of disobeying party guidelines by airing in the news media his dissatisfaction with a lack of Hispanic Cabinet secretaries. In preparation for the decertification vote, Sutton sent a memorandum to central committee chairmen that criticized Ribas.
