CORPUS CHRISTI, Tx — Latinos are the largest minority group in the United States, with a projected 36.2 million Latinos eligible to vote in this year’s presidential election.
According to UnidosUS, a non-profit, non-partisan organization shows these are the top 5 priorities for Latinos this presidential election.
1. Inflation
2. Wages
3. Housing costs
4. Health care costs
5. Immigration is tied with crime and gun violence
Political Analyst Dr. David Smith says the presidential candidates still have to persuade the Latino voter population.
“Depending on who can activate them, determines who is going to turn out at a higher percentage, that is what we aren't sure of yet,” said Dr. Smith.
In 2020, 16.5 million Latinos voted in the presidential election.
According to the National Museum of the American Latino, this is the breakdown of the Latino Vote:
- Mexicans 60%
- Puerto Ricans 13%
- Cubans, Dominicans, Central Americans, and South Americans making less than 7%
"You are going to have some, deeply religious and want to maintain their ties to their catholic identity or catholic faith and their cultural collective is the best way to identify it. They are not willing to move outside of that identity because they want to embrace who they are and where they come from,” Dr. David Smith said.
The Latino Vote is split between social conservatives and fiscally liberal Latinos.
"Then you have some other group in the Latino/Latina who I’m more concerned by being helped by opportunities of education, opportunities for home ownership opportunities for job training so they are looking to branch out beyond their catholic or religious identity,” Dr. Smith said.
California, Texas, and Florida are the top three states with the largest eligible Latino voter population.
The presidential election is Tuesday, November 5th.
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