El Pueblo plans to reach out to Hispanic voters.

The longtime Latino advocacy group is one of 25 groups around the country to receive a grant from the National Council of La Raza for voter outreach ahead of the Nov. 4 elections.

"This type of outreach is critical to increasing the influence and strength of this underserved population in this year's, and future, elections," said advocacy director Irene Godinez in a statement. "Our goal is to make sure that everyone in our community who is eligible acts, participates, and votes."

El Pueblo is training young workers on registration drives and plans outreach efforts in the coming months, including at La Fiesta del Pueblo on Sept. 6-7 at the N.C. State Fairgrounds.

According to the State Board of Elections, slighty less than 1 percent of registered voters were listed as Hispanic as of Aug. 9, although Hispanics made up 6.7 percent of the population in the 2006 Census.

Andea Bazán has been elected chairwoman of the board of the National Council of La Raza.

A longtime advocate for Hispanic issues in North Carolina, Bazán will now work at a national level in the new position at the largest Hispanic civil rights organization in the United States. She succeeds the publisher of the country's largest Spanish-language daily paper.

"Being elected to serve as NCLR's Board Chair is truly a proud moment for me, both personally and professionally," she said in a statement.

Bazan is currently president of the Triangle Community Foundation, a charity in Durham. Previously, she was a co-founder and executive director of El Pueblo, a statewide advocacy and public policy group on Hispanic affairs.

She has master's degrees in social work and public health from UNC-Chapel Hill and has served on the board of La Raza since 2002, most recently as vice chairwoman.

Three Democratic candidates for lieutenant governor will meet.

Winston-Salem City Councilman Dan Besse, attorney Hampton Dellinger and Canton Mayor Pat Smathers will be in a forum Saturday at the annual meeting of the Progressive Democrats of North Carolina.

State Sen. Walter Dalton is not expected to attend.

The meeting will be held at 106 Purefoy Road in Chapel Hill. It also will feature a panel discussion with representatives of N.C. Voters for Clean Elections, People of Faith Against the Death Penalty, the N.C. Housing Coalition and Clean Water North Carolina.

Keynote speakers will be the Rev. William J. Barber, president of the state NAACP, and Marisol Jimenez-McGee, advocacy director for El Pueblo.

After the candidate forum, members of the Progressive Democrats will decide whether to endorse a candidate for lieutenant governor.

A House bill would tax money wire transfers made by illegal immigrants.

Rep. George Cleveland, a Jacksonville Republican who sponsored the bill, said it would be a way to counter the millions of dollars sent to family in other countries by undocumented workers.

But opponents said the bill was unworkable and would open the door to discrimination.

Marisol Jimenez McGee, a lobbyist for El Pueblo, said illegal immigrants already pay sales tax and payroll tax on their earnings.

An attorney for the N.C. Retail Merchants Association said store owners would be forced to require identification of every single wire transfer to avoid lawsuits. Cleveland dismissed the idea:

"If a fella comes in with a pair of shaggy boots on, jeans and a T-shirt, and he's got a straw hat on -- I mean, come on, give me a break." (AP)

The bill remains in a House committee.