But Latinos are not monolithic, and campaign strategists and Hispanic scholars emphasize that Texas Hispanics are very different from those in California.
This state's Latinos, mainly Mexican-Americans, are much more acculturated and, as Angela Claiborne, a 36-year-old Latina from San Antonio put it, "more laid-back."
"They don't have to be led by leaders. Here they belong to the establishment," said Dowd, an Austin-based consultant who was a top strategist in California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's 2006 re-election campaign.
"As a former farm worker myself, I admire Dolores Huerta," said Obama supporter Laura Codina, 59, a retired San Antonio teacher who owns a gift shop. "However, there's still a lot of opportunity for all of us to grow. We're not about the past any more. Let's go to the future."
Obama is targeting the estimated 75 percent of Texas Hispanics younger than 40, and Tino Villarreal, a Clinton supporter, conceded that Obama's allure to younger voters is considerable.
"Especially here in Texas, we're quick to jump on bandwagons, and there are a lot of Latinos that Obama is getting that way," said the 27-year-old University of Texas business school student.
He pointed to campaign posters, created by Los Angeles artist Shepard Fairey, that Obama supporters were waving outside last week's debate site in Austin.
"Look at his posters. They're very revolutionary, very Che Guevara-like," he said of their social-realist style. For younger voters, "it's the popular thing to be with [Obama]. It's always popular to be a rebel."
paul.west@baltsun.com
