Open Letter To Ohio's Dem Party: Give Hispanics Party-Backed Scholarships

CINCINNATI (TDB) -- Elenamary warns that the Ohio Democratic Party could be taking the nation's fastest-growing voting bloc for granted. The Hispanic blogger sees a need for aggressive marketing, voter education and even a Democrat-bankrolled scholarship program that would give $500 financial awards to Latino students who volunteer to work on campaigns.

That last idea -- if applied statewide for all young volunteers regardless of ethnic background -- holds the germ of a creative investment plan. Candidates and campaign treasuries do often accumulate accounts containing unspent political donations. Budgeting just a small portion for a pool of funds at the state party level earmarked for volunteer scholarships would be a superb marketing tool. It would clearly demonstrate that speeches and position papers about education were much more than cheap talk.

From Elenamary's open letter to the Ohio Democratic Party:

"Offer scholarships. The scholarships can be an exchange for volunteering to work on a democratic campaign. Volunteer for your local democratic candidate and get a $500 scholarship to an in-state university institution. When people volunteer on a campaign they have a feeling of making a difference and being part of the difference, of being part of the institution. We want people to feel the Democratic party is their party. I bet odds, too, that once you've worked on a campaign you're more likely to work on another and stay politically active."