The force of the Latino vote was the highlight of discussion at the Kennedy School of Government's (KSG) ARCO Forum last night, where a panel of speakers addressed "The Latino Vote and Election 2000."

"The Latinos will be the key swing voters in the 2000 election," said Alan K. Simpson, director of the Institute of Politics, at the start of the event.

This view of Latinos as the "soccer Moms" of 2000 was echoed by the other panelists: Ruben Navarrette Jr. '90, Judy Chapa, Andy Hernandez, and Robert DePosada. Jesus Mena Jr., KSG's director of communications, served as the event's moderator.

"Demography is political destiny in this country," said Hernandez, former director of the Hispanic Outreach Democratic National Committee. "Projected growth of the Latino population has profound implications over the next quarter century."

Hernandez presented numerous statistics to illustrate his claim.

"Over the last 20 years Latino voter registration has increased 160 percent, while voter registration for the nation has risen only 30 percent," he said.

Hernandez said he was confident that Latinos would continue to rally behind the Democratic Party, as many have in the past.

However, other panelists were quick to align Latino views with the Republican Party's ideology.