In an effort to educate Walla Walla’s Latino community about political issues, a debate between Laura Grant and Terry Nealey, the candidates for 16th District State Representative, took place Sunday, Oct. 18, at St. Patrick’s Church in Walla Walla. The debate was translated into Spanish and organized by Whitman senior Pedro Galvao.

“The work that Pedro has been doing is groundbreaking,” said Grant. “[Latinos] haven’t been reached out to in the past.”

The debate began with an opening statement from each candidate, followed by both preplanned and audience questions. The issues addressed ranged from support for bilingual education programs to enforcement of laws regarding employment for agricultural workers.

“I am open to suggestions and recommendations from all of you,” said Nealey.

Further, Nealey stated that his campaign has been trying to reach out to Latino voters since the beginning, but has sometimes found it difficult.

Neither candidate identified any of the problems they talked about as specifically Latino issues.

“Latinos are like anyone else: they want to live the American Dream,” said Nealey.

Although both candidates discussed farm labor and workers rights, they did not speak directly to how these issues affect Latinos in Walla Walla.

“I wish they’d talked more about employment,” said community member Maria Bahena. “There aren’t a lot of jobs here.”

Bahena said that while she agreed with both candidates’ view that Latinos care about the same issues as everyone else, she felt the debate did not address the issue of political access for Latinos.

“We have lots of needs and we don’t know where to go for help,” she said, speaking about the language barrier that keeps many Latinos from accessing social services.

Galvao felt that the event was successful, particularly since the candidates took questions from the audience.

“I’m glad that they were able to put themselves in a position to have half the questions be things that they weren’t prepared for,” he said.

The reaction from community members in attendance was overall very positive.

“I liked it because it was the first time I’d been to a political debate,” said Bahena. “I had an idea what it meant to be a Democrat or Republican, but I learned what each party’s specific goals were.”

The stated goals of both candidates were fairly similar. Each spoke about the importance of fiscal responsibility, promoting business, supporting agriculture and improving education. Nealey also said that balancing the budget in Olympia and keeping an eye on taxes were crucial steps in fixing the state. Grant mentioned attracting manufacturing firms to the Walla Walla Valley area, including solar panel manufacturers.

Galvao ended the debate by reminding those present that voting on election day is an important step in becoming more involved in politics. According to Galvao, about 1,600 Latinos are registered to vote in Walla Walla, but less than 100 actually voted in the last election.

Galvao also emphasized that although voting is important, people unable to vote can still have a voice.

“Speak to [the candidates] about issues that concern you,” he said.

Grant emphasized that she is there to represent everyone, including undocumented immigrants.

“We need to let them know that they do have a voice and it’s important to utilize it,” she said.