Silver State Times

The Hispanic vote will be paramount for GOP plans to do well in midterm elections as there has been a shift among the once heavy leaning Democratic demographic to embrace Republican ideals.

In an article by Lydia Nusbaum for Florida’s Voice, a previously “hardcore” Democrat voter Caroline Castillo details her switch to the GOP.

On social issues, Castillo said, “Hispanics are mostly conservative. We are traditional, we love family and God. The radicalization of the Democrat party has turned off Hispanics and it’s responsible for helping Hispanics register Independent and Republican.”

“It is no surprise Hispanics are moving to the Republican Party. Democrats have proven time and time again to be out of touch & their values do not align with the Latino community,” the GOP recently tweeted.

According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Latino voters who might have voted blue in 2020, are turning more towards voting for Republicans in the upcoming midterms. The WSJ reports that the fastest growing population of voters is Latinos, with more than 10% of the vote in 2020 and continuously growing. Working-class Latinos are moving away from the Democratic Party, specifically because of they are not happy with President Biden's policies and do not feel aligned with the Democratic Party any longer.

The WSJ found that working-class Latinos switched over to the Republican Party by 11 points and are comparing the “economic boom” under the Trump Administration compared to inflating and rising costs under the Biden Administration.

According to an op-ed from the Washington Examiner, Texas Hispanics are moving towards the Republican Party because of the current administration’s border policies. A Texas Tribune poll found that 57% of Texas Hispanics and 60% of South Texas Hispanics want more border security, according to the op-ed. The op-ed blames Biden’s removal of the Remain in Mexico policy that has led to a record number of illegal crossings.

The Texas Tribune poll also found that 61% of Texas Hispanics are “bothered by the direction” the Democratic Party has gone. The op-ed says, “As in the late 1960s, it (Democratic Party) is on a collision course with ethnic minorities who did so much to prop it up over the years in the mistaken belief that Democrats had something to offer working families.”

In a NALEO Education Fund press release from earlier this year, it was estimated that 11.6 million Latinos will vote this November, with increases in Arizona, Colorado and Nevada. 9.8% of voters will be Latino, a 34.1% increase since 2014, NALEO reports. In Nevada, the projected Latino vote is 165,100, up 5.8% since 2018, according to NALEO.

In Nevada, Ally Magalhaes, a Brazilian immigrant said, “The feeling that the Democratic Party almost by default is going to have the Hispanic vote—it’s not like that anymore,’’ according to the WSJ. Sen. Cortez Masto (D-NV) is the first Latino elected to the Senate and the grand-daughter of a Mexican immigrant. She hopes to use this to appeal to working class Latino voters in Nevada, the WSJ notes.

Her opponent, Adam Laxalt, said, “we are the campaign that stands for the American dream…we stand for secure borders. We stand for law and order. We stand for trying to get kids back into schools and trying to get indoctrination out” in an interview with the WSJ.