Can Cruz Bustamante Save California's Democrats?

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Bustamante can't count on black voters either. Some will remember a speech in 2001 in which the candidate read out a list of black trade unions and accidentally used the word nigger instead of Negro in one of the names — he apologized profusely afterward. But the damage was done. Labor leaders, meanwhile, traditionally big donors to Democratic candidates, have so far held back their support; they resent Bustamante's fund-raising links with Indian casinos, which are typically nonunionized. Concedes Richard Ross, Bustamante's campaign manager: "We are scrambling" to raise money.

That could change now that the polls show Bustamante ahead. Several labor organizations have scheduled meetings over the next two weeks to reconsider their election strategy. "People know it is a serious time," says Bustamante. Very serious indeed for the man who wants to win back his parking spaces in front of the Governor's office.

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