When people feel threatened, there are always politicians who are ready to play on their fears for political advantage. That is what Pete Wilson, former governor of California, was doing when he led the charge to block access by immigrants to a variety of services ranging from educational to health care. This fell especially hard on immigrants from Mexico, legal and illegal. Wilson's anti-immigrant posture was embraced in large measure by the Republican Party. That is exactly what has happened in California.
Immigrants become citizens, and citizens become voters, often with profound results.
The short-term advantage Wilson and the Republican Party gained in California has given way to the GOP's disadvantage among Latino voters as the party has allowed itself to become viewed as hostile to Hispanic interests. Although whites now constitute only 47 percent of California's population, they represent 75 percent of the registered voters. Obviously, that percentage will decline as the Latino voting percentage climbs. Because it sought to be exclusionary rather than inclusive, the GOP has created itself a problem it could have avoided. America's diversity should be seen as an asset, not as a threat.