Home Politics Where the Top Democratic Primary Candidates Stand with Latino Voters

Where the Top Democratic Primary Candidates Stand with Latino Voters

Latino Vote BELatina

Which of the Democrats will win over Latinos in the primaries? While it´s still not clear, there is one thing that is: the Latino vote could swing the Democratic primary. Although Latinos are not homogenous in their opinions on practically anything (abortion, immigration, religion, etc.), the Democrat who wins the Latino vote in the primary is likely to be the one who best denounces the racism that has swept the country under the Trump administration, an opinion that somehow manages to unify this diverse voting group. In a USA Today poll, 70 percent of Latino voters felt that Trump’s rhetoric has encouraged anti-immigrant sentiment, racism or discrimination in the U.S. 

As of early December, the Democratic presidential contest in California — a state that has tremendous sway in predicting the outcome of the primary across the nation — remains fluid. A poll for the Los Angeles Times found that both Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who was the frontrunner in California in September, and former Vice President Joe Biden, lost ground among California´s Democratic primary voters. This drop in votes gave Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who narrowly tops the primary field, a boost. It has also helped Mayor Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Ind., who has doubled his support in the state since the last September poll. As for the controversial former mayor of New York Michael Bloomberg and his chances of seducing Latino voters in the next months, the odds are low. 

At this point in the race Latino, democratic voters are not sticking with a set candidate, but are still open to changing their opinions. So where do the candidates stand with Latino voters and their issues? Here´s a look at what the remaining candidates have been doing right and what they´ve been doing wrong to win their vote.

1 Bernie Sanders

Tío Bernie continues to resonate with Latino voters. Recent polls have put the most liberal of the Democratic candidates as a favorite among Latino voters. Especially in California. What Sanders has done right thus far is having 80 of his 400 campaign staffers that identify as Latino, reports the New York Times. Having Latinos on your staff means that the issues are being talked about and voters are likely to take you more seriously. 

He is aware that immigration isn´t the only thing that matters to Latinos and that in recent polls Latinos have shown that they care a lot about issues having to do with healthcare, affordable housing, and fair wages. He´s also good at taking these messages directly to the communities most impacted. When it comes to immigration, Sanders’ platform, which is available on his website https://berniesanders.com/issues/welcoming-and-safe-america-all/, includes a progressive immigration plan that includes a pause on deportations until an audit of past practices and policies is complete and an expansion of the DACA protections afforded to some children of immigrants brought to the U.S. at a young age.

2 Elizabeth Warren

The Massachusetts senator has been a favorite for liberal Latinos for having been in touch with the leadership of Latino advocacy organizations since long before she launched her campaign. Yet, according to the Washington Post in early December, Warren is not pulling heavily from nonwhite voters as of yet in comparison to Sanders and Biden.

Activists in the Latino community say that Warren is stepping up her efforts, most notably by hiring a national Latino outreach director, Jonathan Jayes-Green, a respected organizer of Panamanian descent, for the job and increasing her familiarity among Latinos to court them. She is also liked by Latinas for her plan, which is referred to on her website, to help women of color boost their wages and open up new pathways to the leadership positions they deserve.

3 Joe Biden

Having name recognition has helped Latinos believe in him, though there isn´t much to applaud about Biden´s outreach to Latinos per se. For starters, he was noticeably absent from the California Democratic Party Endorsing Convention and experts say this did not go unnoticed by Latino voters. On top of that, Politico reported that in November Biden had a falling out with Vanessa Cárdenas, his most senior Latina staffer, who was in charge of outreach to Latino, African-American, and women’s groups. Her allies said that she was frustrated over her lack of input and with the presidential candidate’s immigration rhetoric and poor outreach.

Next, the Washington Post reported that deportations are lower in the Trump administration than they were when Biden was in office during the Obama administration where he earned the nickname “deporter in chief”  by activists. Finally, Biden aroused controversy recently when he declined to speak at the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials.  

4 Michael Bloomberg

The former New York Republican mayor turned Democrat used to joke that a short, divorced Jewish billionaire could not win the presidency. Yet here we are. He has pitched himself as a counterweight to left-wingers like Sanders and Warren, who he says cannot defeat Trump. He says he has a leftish policy agenda, but he is not a fan of Medicare for All. His “stop and frisk” policy wasn´t only deemed unconstitutional, but it turned many Latinos off to him since NYPD officers disproportionately stopped black and Latino New Yorkers (83 percent of the stops from 2004 to 2012 according to ProPublica) despite their comprising about only half of the city’s population. On a positive note, since leaving office he has launched campaigns on gun control and climate change, which appeal to Latinos.

5 Julián Castro

The only Latino candidate in the race, the former Housing, and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro gained respect from Latino voters in the first Democratic debate in Miami when he went head to head with former Rep. Beto O’Rourke’s reluctance to abandon penalties for people who cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally. Unfortunately, he didn´t qualify for the November debates and missing a debate has been fatal to other presidential candidates who tend to end their presidential bid. This would be a shame since he is one of the few people of color in the running and he appeals to Latinos by making Puerto Rico his first stop on the campaign trail and by having put out very comprehensive education and immigration plans in great detail.

6 Pete Buttigieg 

The Indiana mayor has consistently polled in single-digits among Latinos. “To turn this around, he needs advocates, and he needs Latino advocates in particular, who can come out, support him, and who can tell other Latinos to give this guy a chance,” Josh Ulibarri, a Democratic pollster who has focused on Latino voters, told Politico. “The hurdle is high for Latinos right now — we’re in a ‘protect our people’ mood, and I don’t think a 37-year-old mayor can [project] that.” 

The Winner Will Offer Aretha-Style REe-S-P-E-C-T

How will the Democrats effectively reach a population that the Pew Center projects will be the largest minority in the 2020 electorate?https://www.pewsocialtrends.org/essay/an-early-look-at-the-2020-electorate/The Latino potential remains untapped and it will continue to be so if Democrats do not get more creative in their outreach since it seems dropping a few Spanish words in their campaigns doesn´t work. The Latino electorate has always been complex and thus far it seems that no leading Democratic candidate has any idea of how to engage Latinos. 

For starters, native-born Latinos hold complicated views on immigration depending on their economic backgrounds. Opinions about U.S. involvement in foreign politics in Latin America also divide Latino voters. A study by the Pew Research Center in 2017 showed Latinos overwhelmingly ranked improvements in education on a list of top priorities. Second came a strong national defense against terrorist attacks. Third came a strong national economy. Fourth was reduced health care costs. Immigration was fifth on the five-item list. Ultimately, all Latinos are also looking to be given respect and to have respect for their Democratic candidate, especially in an era when you have a president who referred to some of us as criminals and rapists.

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