U.S. Senate candidate Richard Carmona to headline major town hall May 4

Event is part of the inaugural two-day Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce business symposium: "Transforming Arizona's Economy"

Phoenix, Arizona. 03 de mayo.  U.S. Senate candidate Richard Carmona, widely regarded as the leading Democratic candidate running for the seat, will headline a major community town hall at the Phoenix Convention Center.

The forum is free and open to the public, May 4, 2 to 4 p.m., and hosted by the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. It is part of the Chamber’s inaugural two-day business symposium entitled “Transforming Arizona’s Economy.” The symposium features free business workshops, the release of its 16th annual comprehensive economy survey, DATOS: Focus on the Hispanic Market, and the 54th Annual Black & White Ball and Business Awards.

“While this symposium illustrates our unique role as advocates for Latino-owned small businesses in Arizona, the community town hall with Mr. Carmona and the release of the 2012 DATOS report, are events the entire Arizona community should attend,” said Gonzalo de la Melena, president and CEO of the AZHCC. “Whether we’re talking about the U.S. Senate race, where as many a 360,000 Arizona Latinos could vote in the November, or the incredible demographic-economic shift occurring in the state, the symposium is addressing issues that will impact all Arizonans for decades to come.”

Carmona’s appearance will be prefaced by a panel discussing the state and national impact of the burgeoning Latino vote. The featured panelists include:

Danny Ortega, chairman, National Council of La Raza board of director

Jennifer S. Korn, executive director, Hispanic Leadership Network

Rodolfo Espino, assistant professor of political science at ASU

Leticia de la Vara, director, One Arizona, a coalition of 13 voter turnout group

Alan Brittain, Univision Television, VP national political sales

George Ray, Univision Television, national political outreach specialist

The release of the Chamber’s 2012 DATOS report will take place on on May 5, 2012, 11:30 to 1:30 p.m., in the North Ballroom of the Phoenix Convention Center, 100 N. Third St. Among the highlights in this year’s DATOS: Focus on the Hispanic Market report: Latino purchasing power could grow to $50 billion annually by 2015; Latino-owned businesses now total about 65,000 statewide; and a record number of Hispanics – 320,000 to 360,000 – will be eligible to cast ballots in the November elections. Additional market insights will be unveiled to the public on this date.

The Chamber’s two-day symposium culminates with the May 5 Black & White Ball and Business Awards gala. The gala and awards ceremony theme is “Arizona Latinos: A Centennial Legacy”. Among the gala’s special guests are former Arizona Gov. Raul H. Castro, who turns 97 in June, U.S. Senate Candidate Richard Carmona, and Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton.

“The winners of our business awards reflect the growing and historic impact of the state’s Latino business community on every facet of society,” said de la Melena. “As our 2012 DATOS report shows, the future of the economy in this state and across the nation depends more every day on the economic contributions of the Latino community.”

The AZHCC 2012 Business Award recipients are: Woman of Year, Bettina Nava, FirstStrategic; Man of the Year, Ernest Calderón, Calderón Law Offices; Entrepreneur of the Year, Luis de la Cruz, Andale Construction; Corporation of the Year, APS (Arizona Public Service); Community Advocate of the Year, Phil Gordon, former Phoenix mayor; and Legacy Award, Eddie Basha. (Full bios of award recipients available upon request.)

More than 3,000 people are expected to participate in the two-day symposium, the largest single gathering of Latino community and business leaders in the state. The University of Phoenix is the 2012 presenting sponsor for the business symposium. Other major sponsors include Cox Communications, SRP, Univision and Republic Media.

For information about purchasing individual tickets or tables for the DATOS luncheon or Black & White Ball and Business Awards, please contact Norma Macias, (602) 294-6081, or normam@azhcc.com.

by Panorama Online