(CNN Spanish) – Latino vote activists in the United States reported a considerable increase in voters who have registered to participate in the November elections, a trend that accentuates the importance of this demographic sector for the campaigns of Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump.
The non-partisan organization Voto Latino reported that its own registration campaign has exceeded 112,000 registrations through its platform so far this year, which has already reached the goals it had set for crucial states such as Florida, Texas, Georgia , Arizona and North Carolina.
Voto Latino vice president of communications Diana Castañeda told CNN that there was a noticeable increase starting July 21, when President Joe Biden withdrew from the electoral race and announced his support for the vice president. “Before, we had a daily average of 300 or 400. After the announcement, we went to 1,000, 1,200, 1,300 per day,” she highlighted, clarifying that the numbers are expected to rise as the voting date approaches. Since that day, more than 67,000 Hispanics have completed registration with the platform, a figure that does not include people who signed up independently.
Latinos represent 14.7% of all voters eligible to vote in November 2024, that is, at least 36,200,000 are eligible to vote this year in the presidential elections, according to the Pew Research Center, among the more than 65 million of Hispanics living in the US, according to the country’s Census Bureau.
Eli Valentín, political analyst and professor at Virginia Union University, told CNN that, although there is no certainty about which party would obtain the most benefits from the increase in Latino voters, the advantage would first point to Harris. “Many of the younger Latinos are more independent. We still don’t know how it will be reflected in the future, but in the immediate moment, the Democrats could benefit more,” he said.
Valentín said that several Latino organizations are seeking to attract new voters and there is a combination of factors across the political spectrum that are driving this increase, but he considered that Harris’ campaign has contributed more to this dynamic.
Castañeda explained that in previous campaigns a good part of those registered were immigrants who obtained US citizenship, but that now the majority of voter registrations are of young people of Hispanic origin who reach the minimum age. “Every 30 seconds, a young Latino (in the US) turns 18,” she highlighted.
Among the 112,000 people that Voto Latino registered so far in 2024, 55% are between 18 and 29 years old. And, among those who registered since July 21, 86% are under 40.
In this regard, Castañeda also pointed out that young people are fulfilling an educational function for members of the first and second generation of Latinos, helping them “to register and deny false news” about the electoral process and the campaigns.
Millions of Hispanics live in states like Florida and New York, but that is not necessarily where their vote can be most decisive. The demographic map continues to change and the states with the highest proportion of possible Latino voters in 2022 were New Mexico (45%), California (33%) and Texas (32%), according to an analysis from the Pew Research Center. Others such as Arizona (25%) and Nevada (22%) also show an increasingly significant figure.
“In Arizona there are many young voters, we are expecting 160,000 new young Latino voters and they can make a difference if there is a very close election, not only in the presidential elections, but also in the congressional seats,” said Castañeda.
Among the states with a growing Hispanic population, Valentín highlighted one in particular. “Pennsylvania is crucial, I think it is what Ohio was before: whoever wins Pennsylvania, will win the presidency. And there are certain counties there with a large number of Latinos. “It is a new reality,” he expressed. “That adds strength to what the Latino vote is. “No candidate can campaign without paying attention,” he added. For Valentín, both Harris and Trump are trying to connect with the Latino vote.
This week, Harris attacked Trump for his immigration platform and warned that there could be “mass deportations” and “mass detention camps” if the Republican candidate returns to the White House. “We all remember what they did to separate families, and now they have committed to carrying out the largest deportation in American history,” he said.
Trump, despite maintaining his anti-immigration rhetoric and spreading false theories about migrants, is also seeking a rapprochement with the Hispanic community. In recent events he appeared with Latin American artists and his campaign released a video with an adaptation of a Spanish salsa song, but with the lyrics “Kamala, how bad you are.”
A Pew Research Center poll conducted before the Sept. 10 debate showed that Harris had gained ground among Latinos compared to a July poll: 57% of respondents favored her, nearly 20 points away from the 39% who leaned toward her. by Trump.
The Latino community in the United States stopped being homogeneous years ago, with different generations of origin. “There is a lot of diversity. If there is something similar in all groups, it would be the fact that the economy has been the most important issue. Many have made the mistake of believing that for Latinos, migration is the issue that stands out. There is diversity in political philosophy, but the economy is a priority,” Valentín said.
An August survey published by Univision in collaboration with YouGov showed that among the Latinos consulted, the most pressing issues are inflation and employment and the economy, above immigration policies. Then reproductive rights and healthcare appear.
Castañeda, from Voto Latino, highlighted that almost 70% of the people who registered since July 21 through the campaign are women and that 67% of Hispanic women eligible to vote are of reproductive age. “It is one of the two most important issues for Latina women and can be a mobilizing issue in states like Texas or Florida,” which have imposed restrictions on pregnancy terminations, she added.
