DURHAM, NC - Both presidential candidates, scheduled to speak to one of the nation's largest Hispanic civil rights organizations early next week, must recognize the diversity of the Latino population and that a single set of Latino issues does not exist, says a Duke University political scientist.

Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain are scheduled to speak to the annual conference of the National Council of La Raza on Sunday and Monday, respectively.

Political science professor Paula McClain says if either candidate plays to one segment of the Latino population, it will likely put them at odds with others, such as newer Mexican-American immigrants.

"With respect to non-citizen Mexican immigrants, given that they will play no official role in the voting in the 2008 election, it makes little sense for either McCain or Obama to try to ‘court' this vote," says McClain, who is also a professor of public policy and African and African American Studies at Duke. "Their issues, however, might be undertaken by certain advocacy groups who do have the ability to mobilize Latino citizens."

She says such advocacy groups may wield enough political power to mobilize the larger voting Latino population around immigration and labor issues.

"But assuming that all Latinos are on the same page on these issues would be a big mistake for either candidate, given the diversity of Latino populations," McClain says. "Research shows that U.S. Latinos' views on immigration and other issues mirror those of other citizen groups, so it would be simplistic to not recognize the nuances."

McClain has conducted research on Latino immigrants in the South, particularly North Carolina, Arkansas and Tennessee. She is the lead author of two studies exploring the relationship between blacks and Latinos in the South: "Racial Distancing in a Southern City: Latino Immigrants' Views of Black Americans" and "Black Americans and Latino Immigrants in a Southern City." She is currently working on a third study.

While Mexican immigrants may not heavily impact the election, McClain says the established Latino community could be a factor in a swing state like Florida.

"The Latino population in Florida consists of more groups than Cubans, which is the group that everyone focuses on," says McClain, adding that the Cuban population is more diverse than people realize.

"Older post-1959 Cubans are still concerned about Fidel Castro and his successor, his brother Raul, and want the U.S. to continue the boycott, while mid-age Cubans, who still have relatives in Cuba, want more openness between the U.S. and Cuba. A third group, younger Cubans born in the U.S. with little ties to Cuba, are not as concerned with issues in Cuba. This generational shift in the Cuban population is resulting in the older, post-1959 Cubans being more Republican, while younger U.S.-born Cubans being more Democratic or independent."

She adds there is an increase in "other Latino groups in Florida from Central and South America, along with a sizable portion of Mexicans, and these groups are often at odds politically with the dominant Cubans."