Now that Latinos have helped Democrats regain the highest office in the land and bought into the promise of a problem-solving president, there is hope for another attempt to overhaul the immigration laws.

But there is also a strain of "No, we can't."

The economic downturn and the notoriously toxic nature of immigration politics have left some skeptical over seeing any action soon on bills that have stalled repeatedly in Congress. For a while, at least, it's "no se puede."

"In the best of times, this issue doesn't lend itself for a quick fix in the beginning of an administration," said Muzaffar Chishti, director of the Migration Policy Institute at New York University School of Law. "And these are not the best of times."

If unemployment spikes next year, that would be exactly the wrong time to bring up the debate over legalizing the undocumented, Chishti said. Job losses could undermine the argument that America's economy desperately needs immigrant labor.

But Latinos could use their newfound political clout to press immigration issues, and many Hispanic leaders are promising just that. Though immigration has dropped in prominence compared with the economy, the Iraq war and health-care reform, the topic still raises concern due to mounting numbers of illegal immigrants, increased raids, bureaucratic problems and a wave of anti-Hispanic hate crimes.

Long Island saw the latest trouble last week, when a young immigrant was stabbed to death in Patchogue on his way to a friend's house. Police said a teenage mob went out to target a Mexican and seized on Marcello Lucero, a dry-cleaning employee from Ecuador. Advocates immediately pointed to Suffolk County's heated debates over illegal immigration and County Executive Steve Levy's calls for various crackdowns. There was talk of having local police assume immigration-enforcement duties, and that's been enough to make Latinos afraid to report crimes, said Patrick Young, program director of the Central American Refugee Center in Long Island. He is also supervising attorney at the Westchester Hispanic Coalition.

A vigil in Rockland County on Friday mourned the killing and called for a humanitarian approach to immigration.

"If it is not addressed, if people are not brought out of the shadows, then these violent attacks will continue," Young said. "Because these are people who the community views as noxious, they are people who are subject to attack."

Some are wondering whether President-elect Barack Obama could help transcend the inflammatory, racially charged discussion over immigration, in part because of his own racial identity.

"I think it's going to become much harder for this kind of coded, look-the-other way, wink-and-nod kind of language that's used in the United States to fly when you're looking at the guy across the table who comes from African heritage," said Simon Rosenberg of New Democratic Network, a progressive think tank.

But he and other pro-reform advocates see pragmatic reasons for pushing "change" on immigration:

- The sticking point has been the principle of allowing millions of undocumented immigrants to pay a fine and legalize their status, something that they cannot do under current law. But a poll by Lake Research Partners found that most Americans want a comprehensive approach that combines border security with a legalization measure for the undocumented. Notably, the survey described the legalization process as "requiring" illegal immigrants to register, as opposed to "allowing" them to do so. The wording avoids the impression that legalization is essentially a giveaway, or amnesty.

- Latinos supported Obama over Sen. John McCain by a 2-to-1 ratio and made a difference in several swing states, exit polls found. A survey by the group America's Voice found that Latino immigrants were even more pro-Obama: 78 percent, compared with 67 percent support from Latinos overall.

Earlier polls found that Latinos moved energetically toward the Democratic Party amid anti-immigrant rhetoric from GOP candidates and increased raids by the Bush administration. Even if immigration isn't one of the top issues named by Latino voters, it's a big motivator in deciding on a candidate's appeal, said Janet Murguía, president of the Hispanic civil rights group National Council of La Raza.

"I think it's fair to say after these election results that the Democrats can put the Latinos in their column," Murguía said during a conference call Thursday. "But they're not there forever."

The Obama team could take many steps administratively to shift immigration policy, including enforcement procedures, Chishti said.

It could lift barriers that prevent eligible immigrants from seeking legal status, including the rule that kicks in when undocumented immigrants leave the United States. Under that rule, they are barred from re-entering for 10 years if they've spent a year in this country without authorization. It could move away from raids against factory workers and instead file charges against employers and human traffickers. It could pull back on the growing federal program known as 287(g), which trains local officers to enforce immigration law. Under Obama, for example, the program could be limited to use by jail personnel, and not police, in checking the status of inmates.

"My feeling is they will try to get as much done administratively as they can," Chishti said.

Another possibility is to pursue smaller-scale bills, including the DREAM Act, which would lay out a process for undocumented college students to seek a green card.

Reach Leah Rae at lrae@lohud.com or 914-694-3526.