• AP/Yahoo, Wednesday, October 20, 2010 10:41 PM

Note to candidates: What plays in Spanish no longer stays in Spanish. Spanish-language networks and publications are taking on a more prominent role this election season, nabbing debates with major candidates and increasingly seeing their political coverage spin out into mainstream English-language media.

In California, Republican gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman hoped to attract Hispanic voters and others during her debate against Democrat Jerry Brown, sponsored by Univision and held in English with translations. Instead, the former eBay CEO was put on the defensive over accusations she should have known her longtime housekeeper was in the U.S. illegally. The exchange went viral.

Even those who toe a hard line on immigration are seeking to make their case in Spanish-language media, recognizing that they need some Hispanic votes to win and that Hispanics - who account for 9 percent of registered voters nationwide - are concerned about more than that one issue.

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