Harris underperforms with Latino voters, Trump maintains grasp: Poll
Vice President Harris is underperforming the last three Democratic candidates for the White House among Latino voters while her GOP competitor, former President Trump, maintains his support among the critical group of voters, a new survey found.
The survey, conducted by the New York Times / Siena College, found Harris has slipped into low territory for Democrats.
In 2016, 68 percent of Latino voters backed the Democratic nominee. It dropped to 62 percent in 2020 and Harris now earns 56 percent support.
The Republican Party, however, has gained support over time. In 2016, Trump earned 28 percent support and 36 percent in 2020. As of the most recent survey, he has 37 percent support among Latino voters.
Throughout his three presidential campaigns, Trump has made immigration a focus. He’s targeted migrants for “invading” the country and took aim at the U.S.-Mexico border.
The survey also found that most Hispanic respondents don’t feel like Trump is talking about them when he speaks on immigration.
Among Hispanic respondents born in the U.S., just 30 percent say they think Trump is talking about them and 67 percent say they do not believe his remarks are about them. Among Hispanic respondents born outside the U.S., 43 percent say Trump is talking about them and 51 percent say they don’t think his words are about them.
Most respondents say it’s likely they will vote in the upcoming election and most say they are going to vote for their chosen candidate. About 7 percent say they don’t know who they will vote for.
The survey comes as both campaigns are looking to secure the last remaining support before the election.
Last week, Harris worked to court Latino voters with a town hall hosted by Univision, an American Spanish-language network, where she answered questions on immigration, the economy and reproductive rights.
According to The Hill/Decision Desk HQ, Harris leads Trump nationally by 2.9 percent, based on an aggregation of polls.
The Times survey was conducted Sept. 29 to Oct. 6 among 902 Hispanic voters. It has a margin of error of 4.5 percentage points.