‘Sleeping Giant’: Latino vote is crucial in Clinton-Trump contest

Not only are U.S. Latino voters set for record turnout this election, but a new poll Sunday Nov. 6 shows Latino support for Donald Trump may be lower than for any Republican presidential candidate in more than 30 years, reports the Los Angeles Times.

Hillary Clinton has support from 76% of the Latino electorate, according to the Noticias Telemundo/Latino Decisions /NALEO Educational Fund poll.

That’s a higher level of support than President Obama won in both of his elections. Latino Decisions’ survey showed 75% of Latinos backed Obama in 2012. Exit polling put his support at 71%.

Just 14% of Latino voters backed Trump, the survey found, That’s about half of Mitt Romney’s 27% showing with Latinos and fewer than the GOP’s low-point when Bob Dole won 21% of the Latino vote in 1996.

Polling in California found similar results, according to the final statewide USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times survey. Clinton was winning 73% of Latino registered voters compared with 17% for Trump in a two-way match up, the poll found.

Exit data compiled by the Pew Hispanic Center shows no Republican candidate faring worse with Latinos in presidential elections dating to 1980.

Republicans approached this election year hoping to improve their standing with Latinos, a growing part of the electorate. But instead, their candidate seems to have had the opposite effect.

Trump’s criticism of Latino immigrants as “rapists” and criminals set a tone when he launched his campaign, amplified by his proposals to deport those here illegally and build a wall along the border with Mexico.

A “Trump bump” in early voting by Latinos already has been documented in recent days in Florida, Nevada, Texas and some other states.

Voter registration drives have been robust for the past year in many Latino and immigrant communities, and now many advocacy groups are working to ensure Latino voters get to the polls.

Almost 15 million Latinos could vote this year, a record, and polling shows the Latino electorate puts more importance on voting this year than in 2012.

Source: latimes.com