While President Joe Biden was trying to save his candidacy in a press conference, on Thursday, July 11, 76-year-old Earl Wilcox was getting into his floral orange and blue van, emblazoned with a half-English, half-Spanish slogan: "Vote for your familia." The Democratic patriarch was on his way to a voter registration drive at the Casa Primavera retirement home in Phoenix, Arizona, one of the key states for the November 5 presidential election.
It was 42°C, but the heat wasn't enough to scare off this South Phoenix barrio native, with his tall stature and shock of white hair. His grandmother had come to the United States two generations ago. When he was 26, he became the youngest elected member of the state House. In 1999, he took over the El Portal restaurant with his wife, Mary Rose, the first Latina ever elected to the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors. The couple have made El Portal into the historic heart of the local Latino community, and an obligatory stop for Democrats on the campaign trail.
On March 19, Biden chose El Portal to launch his "Latinos con Biden-Harris" program. It was his third visit in 10 months to the state, whose population is 30% Latino. "The president spoke for 15 minutes. His whole message was, 'I need you. I need your help' to finish the job," said Wilcox. The audience included some 50 community leaders. "He spoke to all of them. He went around, shook everybody's hand. He was very impressive. We felt good about him. He was solid mentally". Nothing like the Biden seen at the June 27 debate, who was unable to confront Trump. The activist blamed the presidential team: "They made him cross the Atlantic four times!"
Arizona – which Biden won in 2020 by a margin of less than 11,000 votes – is one of the six swing states that will determine the presidential contest. Even before the debate, Trump had taken the lead in the polls, though the results were still within the margin of error. "But we thought that with all Trump's problems with the courts, the independents would support Biden," explained Wilcox. On July 9, the Cook Political Report, a renowned electoral analysis newsletter, moved the state into the "Lean Republican" category. A sign that caused dismay among Democratic activists.
Wilcox doesn't advocate the withdrawal of Biden, whom he described as a "good man," unlike many others who are eager to "push him out." His only reaction was: "We're concerned. We're very concerned." For the White House, but also for the other seats that will be at stake down ballot – in the Senate, the House, and the Arizona legislature. "If someone else comes in and takes his place, we'll go with it," he said. "But it's going to be an uphill battle."
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