Mixed community sentiment on Obama victory

Obama victory as US Dem contender gets mixed reactions from Fil-Ams

The official nomination of Barack Obama as the official Democratic presidential contender not only created a division among US Democrats but also divided Filipino Americans as well.

Most of the young Fil-Ams are rooting for Obama, who they said represents hope and change.

“It’s exciting because he’s a person of color and as Filipinos, I think we have to have somebody there that sort of looks like us representing our ideals and our beliefs,” said Obama supporter Alex Santos.

“He represents change more than anybody else,” said Ernesto Evangelista, another supporter of the first black American presidential candidate.

Supporters of New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, meanwhile, were dismayed by their defeat. They, however, still hope that their contender can still pull off a miracle.

“I’m still hoping that somehow the tides will change and that we can have a woman president, that’s what I’ve been hoping for ever since she announced her candidacy,” said Karen Brouwer.

“We still believe that she’s the stronger candidate going into the general election because she won the popular vote and she also won the key swing states,” said Loreto Dimaandal, a Clinton campaign volunteer.

Clinton remains popular among Filipino women and elders. She also enjoy the support of Filipino campaign workers and volunteers.

Is a “dream team” Obama-Clinton ticket in the offing?

There are also reports that the former US First Lady is open to possibilities of being fielded as the Democrats’ vice presidential candidate.

Some of the people from both camps are supportive of the idea.

“I think it’s probably a good idea,” said Brouwer.

“It would be a good way to mend fences and bring all her supporters in,” said Evangelista.

However, some of them are not. “I don’t think so,” said Santos.

The road to the official nomination has been rocky and it is inevitable for both camps to trade barbs even as the selection has already been done.

Some of the supporters went as far as considering voting for Republican candidate John McCain should their contenders lose the nomination.

“They are very passionate and they strongly support Sen. Clinton like I do so in these times, we’re gonna let them cool down, calm down,” said Dimaandal.

And with the official nomination already at hand, the Democrats would have to unite to make sure that they regain control of the White House after the November election. With a report from Ging Reyes, North America News Bureau chief

 Source: http://www.bytcs.com/international2/2008/6/6/obama-victory-as-us-dem-contender-gets-mixed-reactions-from.html