MAPA's activities contributed to support for which presidential candidate and the election of Mexican American candidates to Congress?

• A. Lyndon B. Johnson and no seats
• B. Barack Obama and Latino party
• C. Richard Nixon and white-only candidates
• D. John F Kennedy and Mexican American candidates to Congress

Answer: (D)

MAPA’s work centered on mobilizing Mexican American voters, building political power, and endorsing candidates who would advance their community’s interests. That activism helped galvanize support for John F. Kennedy in the 1960 race and contributed to the election of Mexican American candidates to Congress, such as Henry B. Gonzalez and Ed Roybal, who represented a growing wave of Mexican American representation in the House. The pairing of Kennedy with the rise of Mexican American congresspeople reflects MAPA’s historical impact on both presidential support and congressional seats. The other pairings don’t fit this pattern of mobilizing Mexican American voters to back a presidential candidate and achieve representation in Congress.