How not to court hispanics
Nate Silver observes "In some formulations [...] a higher Hispanic population actually turns up as a statistically predictor of a vote against Sotomayor. I suspect that is probably a fluke; among the five Republicans in the states with 20%+ Hispanic populations planning to vote against Sotomayor, Kyl and Ensign are very conservative, Cornyn is in a leadership position in his caucus, and Hutchison may have to bolster her conservative credentials in anticipation of her primary against Rick Perry. John McCain's nay vote is more surprising, and he seems to being a thorn in Obama's side.*"
Great assessment of the votes here; and remember the Latino vote was a key factor in several states that went Democratic in a Presidental election for the first time in many years (e.g. Indiana).
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* as quoted on Andrew Sullivan's blog.