Democrats Are Ignoring Hispanic Voters At Their Own Risk

Hispanic voters are not a lock for the Democratic Party.

I want to make a political point but not a partisan point. When Joe Biden was asked, he said that unlike African American voters, Hispanic/Latino voters are not monolithic in their views. That is technically accurate. 

He was ruthlessly attacked but his point was that African American voters tend to be multi-generational Americans who are black. Hispanic/Latino voters in this country tend to come from multiple backgrounds including Spain, Mexico, Cuba, Guatemala, Puerto Rico, just to name a few. It is a multitude of people from multiple countries that are in their second or third generation in the U.S.

Hispanic voters are not a lock for the Democratic Party. Democrats have been trying to make Hispanic voters a lock, like the African American community, although that seems to be changing as well as Democratic leadership trends towards white, secular, atheist. 

Of the Hispanic voters in this country, a third of them plan to vote for Donald Trump. Interestingly enough, among Hispanic voters, there is a growing trend towards faiths with a Protestant background, whether it be evangelical or charismatic.

Of all things, Hispanic voters with this background line up with the Republican party, especially on immigration. 

Contrast this with 85-90% of African American voters who consistently support the Democratic party. There are historic reasons for this in this country while Hispanic voters are a significantly newer voting block.

Data over the past few decades tells us that the longer a Hispanic family stays in this country, the more likely they are to identify as White and Republican. A Hispanic family that comes from a Protestant/Evangelical background is even more likely to identify as Republican, which is the main trend line that American immigration is experiencing. 

This is hands down a voting block that is open to a Republican message on, among other things, restrictionist immigration. Why? Because they are fleeing homelands and don’t want the people who ruined their country ruining this country. 

One of the reasons Florida went Republican in 2018 despite the odds is because the Puerto Ricans voters who fled Puerto Rico went to Florida and voted Republican. 

Democrats tend to look at things through identity politics that can get them in trouble with Hispanic voters. Republicans tend not look at identity politics in ways that can get them in trouble with Hispanic voters. There are too many people on both sides with vested interests in their methodology to get Hispanic voters that they are not successful. 

The message to both parties is you cannot take both parties for granted.