People on both sides of Northern Virginia’s immigration divide are expecting the issue to dominate the election in Prince William County and drive voter turnout higher than usual for an election with four board seats on the ballot.
“The illegal immigration issue is really going to draw people out who normally don’t vote in local elections,” said Republican Prince William County Board of Supervisors Chairman Corey Stewart, who is in a hard-fought race with Democratic challenger Sharon Pandak. “It is the gut issue that is really socking people, one way or the other,” he said.
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The Prince William County crackdown — denying some county services to illegal immigrants and increasing local police power to check legal status in misdemeanor arrests and traffic stops — has galvanized critics and immigrant supporters who are trying to push for higher turnout among the more than 15,000 registered Hispanic voters in Prince William County.
“People understand — when certain candidates make fighting illegal immigration their issue — it is incumbent on all immigrant citizens to vote,” said Jon Liss, executive director of Tenants and Workers United.
But the immigrant community in Prince William County has not traditionally voted in large numbers and it will take a massive effort to get them to the polls, said Nancy Lyall, of the advocacy group Mexicans Without Borders.
County Republicans issued a “wake-up” call to their supporters Monday, citing a Spanish-language sample ballot that was distributed in Woodbridge Sunday near a grocery store highlighting candidates who opposed the crackdown.
“This is a serious wake-up call to legal citizens who are concerned about the activities of illegal aliens in Prince William County — now they really need to make sure to vote,” Prince William County Republican Chairman Tom Kopko said in a statement.
“Considering how strongly people feel about the issue, I think they are really going to come out and support it,” he said.
Both sides have employed phone banks, canvassed neighborhoods and prepared broad get-out-the-vote networks.
“I think some folks have taken notice of the immigrant vote,” said Jaime Contreras, district director for the Service Employees International Union. “It’s a long shot [to vote out supporters of the crackdown], but I think there is a chance,” he said.
dc examiNation and poll: What role do you think illegal immigration will play in today’s vote?
