In the same week as Obama reels from a “shellacking” by the electorate and Chihuahua elects a nineteen year old chief of police, the Washington Post reports that the U.S. has finally agreed to subject its Human Rights record to review by the U.N. council.
The GOP (Grand Old Party) as the Republican Party is also known, have taken the House of Representatives while the Democrats have retained the majority in the Senate. A breakdown of the voting results is attached below, courtesy of electoral-vote.com
An interesting side note to the elections is the historic number of minorities and LGBT candidates winning races. US News writes, for example, about Nikki Haley the first female South Carolina representative elected by either party. She is also the first Indian American governor elect of the area. Allen West became the first African American House Representative of Florida since 1870. Susana Martinez became the first woman Hispanic governor from either party while Brian Sandoval became the first Hispanic governor ever of the state of Nevada. The New York Times has a full and thorough run down of the wins and losses of Latino politicians across the country.
The Tea Party also won 32% of the seats they ran for, an overview of which can be found on BBC News, though there is speculation as to whether or not they will actually be able to deliver on some of the promises they have made to their electorate. It is will also be curious to see how a small government political party will in fare in a political institution as large as the US.
With no one party having complete control it is now more crucial than ever for co-operation between the two main political parties in order to address important issues such as the economy, immigration and security.
The New York Times does an excellent run down of the election results. Below is the House map:
On November 1, 2010 Diane Dimond wrote an article for the Huffington Post entitled “A Mexican Savior or Sitting Duck?”. This may seem rather unkind given that the article is about the election of the new Chief of Police in Praxedis Guadalupe Guerrero in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. However, when you realise that this is a city a mere 35 miles southeast of Ciudad Juarez, one of the most dangerous cities in the world, and that the previous Chief of Police was kidnapped and beheaded, you begin to see where the writer is coming from.
Marisol Valles Garcia, a twenty year old criminology student has been elected to this new position. She boasts a squad of 13, nine of whom are women. They have one squad car and four guns. They patrol a population of approximately 9,149 who live terrorised by cartel violence. A Mexican Savior or Sitting Duck?
The plan seems simple enough – leave the cartels to the military and create a better relationship with the community. But with the fate of her predecessor and the rising death toll due to the cartels (two major cartels, the Sinaloa and Juarez are battling for control over the city’s main highway) combating fear in the community will not be an easy task, especially with events including the recent massacre in the nearby city of Juarez of a children’s birthday party (death toll at the time of writing was 16).
What seems evident from elections on either side of the border is the thirst for change and the drive of a younger generation to create it.
Chicano Conversations 