Although a recent series of new polls taken nationally and in Florida shows that momentum is clearly on Mitt Romney's side 24 days before election day, Frank Sanchez isn't buying it.
"Polls are going to go up and down," the Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade told CL. "We all know as the election grows near, polls are going to tighten. What matters now is what you see happening right here – it is the ground game, it is the volunteers, and we have an amazing volunteer team down here in Florida."
There were approximately 40 people who gathered to greet Sanchez at the unveiling of "Casa Obama", the new headquarters for the Obama for America campaign's Hispanic outreach efforts, early Saturday afternoon in West Tampa.
Sanchez was an early backer and fundraiser for Barack Obama during his initial run for the presidency, leading to the president nominating him for his position in the Commerce Department (Sanchez also worked in the Clinton administration in the Transportation Department). He emphasized that he was allowed to appear at a campaign event, as long as it was on his own time.
His appearance comes a day after a surprising new poll by the Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald/BayNews 9 survey showed that among Hispanic voters in the Sunshine State, Mitt Romney now leads Obama, 46 to 44 percent.
This article appears in Oct 11-17, 2012.