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The first thing that Matilde Ospina did after taking the oath of citizenship last year was register to vote. "I always voted in my native Colombia, and I was eager to do it here also," she said. On Feb. 5, along with millions of Latino voters, the 83-year-old great-grandmother of seven made political history.

There are those who still question whether the Latino vote is as important as it is proclaimed to be. Some wonder if Latinos actually go out and vote, and if it's an exaggeration to say that Latino voters will decide who will be the next president of the United States. Even those of us who actively promote the Hispanic vote sometimes are fearful that our optimistic outlook on the awakening of the sleeping giant could fall flat on its face.

But Super Martes helped clear up any doubts skeptics might have about the political clout of the fastest-growing sector of our electorate. Now we know. Latinos do go out and vote, and not only will they decide who will be the next president of the United States, but for the first time they have a say in who will be the candidates for the Republican and Democratic parties.

For Ospina, who has resided in New York for more than 20 years, the choice was easy: "I think Mrs. Clinton is even better than her husband, and he did a lot for us," she said. "She will work to find a solution on immigration, and she might even end the war."

Latino voter turnout for primaries traditionally has been low, but this time around Latinos were energized. In California alone, exit polls show that Latinos constituted almost 30 percent of the vote on the Democratic side, even though they are only 22 percent of the electorate. There are fewer Hispanic Republicans, and most of them supported Sen. John McCain in California and elsewhere. In the Florida primary, it was the Cuban-American vote that gave McCain the edge he needed.

However, the major beneficiary of Latino voter turnout on Super Tuesday was Sen. Hillary Clinton. Nationally, she received six out of every 10 Latino votes. In California, she got 67 percent to Sen. Barack Obama's 32 percent. In New York, 73 percent to Obama's 26 percent, and in New Jersey, 68 percent to Obama's 30 percent.

But wait. Those who want to bring race into the equation should not jump to conclusions; it was partly name recognition — Ospina had never even heard of Obama — and partly the appeal of the candidate. Roberto Suro, a professor with the University of Southern California, points out that the profile of the Latino Clinton supporter is similar to that of her traditional support base: Mostly women, elderly, poor and middle-class citizens who look for someone with experience.

"The endorsements that Clinton received from people like Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Board of Supervisors member Gloria Molina and United Farm Workers leader Dolores Huerta also helped, not just because of their symbolism, but because they move votes," added Suro, former director of the Pew Hispanic Center. Among other things, he feels the results confirm that Latinos can be the determining factor in an election. "If Obama and Clinton had split the Latino vote, it could have been a dead heat, or Clinton could have lost there," he said.

With all of the talk of Clinton's victories among Latinos, some might have lost sight of the fact that Obama did make some gains among Latinos — modest gains, but gains nevertheless. National polls prior to Super Tuesday gave Clinton 59 percent and Obama 19 percent of the Latino vote. So, in essence, Clinton held on to her loyal following, and Obama gained, especially among the young, independents, the undecided and recently naturalized citizens who had not established loyalties. On average, he received about 30 percent of the Latino vote. In Arizona he fared better, with 42 percent of the Latino vote and 50 percent in his home state of Illinois.

Super Martes showed us that the power of the Latino vote is not a myth. Latino voters are here to stay; now they are energized, and anyone who is a serious contender for political office in areas where their presence continues to grow can no longer ignore them or take them for granted.