One Tucson man will be representing Southern Arizona at the Democratic National Convention this week. Currently running to be a Legislative District 2 representative in the State House of Representatives, Daniel Hernandez is both honored and excited to spend the week in Philadelphia at the DNC.
"I feel really lucky to be able to represent Southern Arizona as a delegate from the Democratic Party in support of Sec. Clinton at this upcoming convention," Hernandez said.
After seeing footage of Clinton and Kaine campaigning together I can't wait to head to Philly for the Democratic National Convention.
— Daniel Hernandez Jr (@djblp) July 23, 2016
At the convention, he's really looking forward to diving in and learning as much as he can about the official party platform. From what he knows, he says it will be one of the most progressive platforms ever.
"Learning about what's in the platform," he said. "When we say that we are fully inclusive of the LGBT community, what does that mean? What are the different planks within the platform, that we've established for protecting those in the LGBT community?
He predicts the DNC will have much less fanfare than the RNC, and will spend more time focusing on the issues. Some of the ones he wants to spend time addressing: gun violence, LGBT rights, immigration reform, and economic inequality.
"It's not going to be the reality show that was the Republican Convention for four days in Cleveland," he said. "It's going to be a lot of conversation about policy, where the Republicans and Democrats differ, and really I think, where we want to move the country forward."
As for Sec. Clinton's choice to pick Sen. Tim Kaine for her running mate, he's thrilled.
"He has never lost an election. Yes, a lot of people say that well he's not Latino, or he's not a woman. But he is someone who gets things done," Hernandez said. "He is someone who is really passionate about the work he does. He truly believes in public service."
Clinton/Kaine. Let's go get this done! #2016
— Daniel Hernandez Jr (@djblp) July 23, 2016
"Senator Tim Kaine, as someone who's a governor, someone who was a mayor, and someone who is now a senator. I think he has the experience not only to be a great VP, but if ever he needed to step into that role, he'd be a great presidential person for us to have," he said.
A board member of the Sunnyside District School Board since 2011, Hernandez feels that having a woman as the presidential candidate on a ticket for a major political party sends an important message to kids.
"A really strong message to a lot of our kids in Sunnyside, and a lot of the kids that are attending school now," he said. "That whether you're African-American, Latino, or a woman, you really can be anything you want."
