News outlets across the country—including this one—have been focused on the western states lately, as Colorado, New Mexico and Nevada are shaping up to be hot battleground states this November. Latino voters are expected to support Obama, but historically their voter turnout has been poor.

To make sure that doesn’t happen this time, Federico Pena, Denver’s first Latino mayor (during the 1980s) and a former cabinet secretary, is going door-to-door in Latino neighborhoods to get out the vote for the Democratic candidate. Today, NPR’s “All Things Considered” followed Pena with a microphone, recording a range of reactions from voters. One even swore at the former mayor. It’s worth a listen, if only to experience how demoralizing the job of door-to-door campaigning often is. Pena also told NPR that immigration reform remains a huge issue for Latinos.

NPR also followed former state Sen. Larry Trujillo, who is campaigning for Republican John McCain. Trujillo predicted that McCain would need at least a quarter of the Latino vote, but that he would do better. With Latinos making up a fifth of Colorado voters, it seems more likely that McCain will struggle in the state.

(AP Photo)