Lt. Gov. Sanchez now says he was 21 -- not 18 -- when he voted for Reagan
UPDATED
Lt. Gov. John Sanchez today issued a statement about the dust-up over when he voted for Ronald Reagan for president, and whether Sanchez was of legal voting age.
Here are the relevant parts of his statement, issued in response to my column.
His own words demonstrate the accuracy of what I wrote about him, and for that we thank him.
SANCHEZ -- "I want to be perfectly clear. I turned 18 on January 11, 1981. The first time that I was able to cast a ballot for president was in 1984, and I proudly cast that vote for Ronald Reagan.
"On Saturday, I stated that ‘My very first vote when I turned 18 years old was for a man called Ronald Reagan.’
I was referring to the first time that I was able to cast a ballot for president after turning 18 years old.”
The math means this: At the time Sanchez now says he actually voted for Reagan -- in 1984 -- he was 21 years old.
Thank you, Mr. Lieutentant Governor, for your honesty.
** A column I wrote earlier today is below. Please scale further down on my blog for more coverage about Sanchez and the convention.
COLUMN
MY PIECE ABOUT LT. GOV. JOHN SANCHEZ saying he voted for Ronald Reagan in 1980 has the spinmasters at work, trying to rewrite a small bit of history.
They have attempted to challenge the story with statements on other websites. That is their right, but their facts are wrong. They know it too.
Sanchez told a Republican convention on Saturday that he voted for Reagan just after he turned 18. Sanchez, now 49, was talking about the 1980 election.
But Sanchez, according to public records and his own biographical data, was born on Jan. 11, 1963.
That means he would have been 17 for the November 1980 election in which Reagan was elected, and therefore not of legal voting age. Sanchez would have been 21 in 1984 when Reagan was re-elected.
But Sanchez said he voted for Reagan as an 18-year-old, something that appears impossible.
Those are the facts. Those who say Sanchez did not specify a time frame of when he voted for Reagan are spinning as hard as they can, but they cannot change the story he told.
I stand by my column. Some 800 people were in attendance for Sanchez's story about Reagan. Those paying attention also heard him speak of the pride he felt as an 18-year-old voting for Reagan.
And that is that.
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