Sweeping wins for Democrats in U.S. midterm elections have rekindled hopes among Latino activists of achieving a comprehensive overhaul of immigration policy that was blocked by Republicans in Congress.

Democrats swept Republicans from power in the U.S. House of Representatives in Tuesday's elections, and appeared to have taken control of the Senate, in a clear repudiation of President George W. Bush's handling of Iraq.

..."I would say our chances in the next Congress are better than they have ever been," said Frank Sharry, the executive director of the Washington-based National Immigration Forum...

[...says that public opinion is "divided" about what to do about the illegal aliens here now, and implies that the House/Senate represent that divide...]

..."It's early days, but there are real grounds for optimism," said Elias Bermudez, the founder and executive director of Phoenix-based advocacy group Immigrants Without Borders. [described as an "immigrant-rights advocate" --LW]

[...points to AZ propositions winning, and also Dem winners pretending to support enforcement... says that both Bush and Pelosi support "reform"...]

..."If President Bush is smart and is interested in getting something accomplished in his final two years as president, this is a natural issue for him," said Michael Shifter, vice president for policy at the Inter-American Dialogue...

..."A more humane immigration measure might begin to repair the damage in U.S.-Latin American relations," Shifter said.