News of President Donald Trump gaining ground with Hispanic voters has been in headlines lately with the release of a Harvard/Harris poll. The poll shows approval of Trump among Hispanic voters – traditionally Democratic – is on the rise. The poll also shows the president enjoys a majority support among Hispanic men.
The findings come a few weeks before the election, and could mean a potential swing of Hispanic votes to Trump in a few of the battleground states where the race had been too close to call.
The Harvard/Harris poll showed 51 percent of Hispanic men approve of Trump, his highest approval ratings among Hispanic men since the start of his presidency.
The poll shows that the president leads among certain key groups of Hispanic voters like Cuban and Venezuela–born Americans, who are 18 and older. Trump also enjoyed a higher approval rating among Hispanic men who were born and currently live in the United States, at 33 percent, than among the general population, at 29 percent.
In comparison to the last election in 2016, when Trump gained only 28 percent of the Hispanic vote, this latest poll suggests Trump is making substantial gains among an important voting group.
However, the approval rating among Hispanic women remains low at 29 percent, according to the poll. According to the data, women are less likely to vote for Trump, with 65 percent of Hispanic women preferring Biden. It is worth noting that among all women, regardless of ethnicity, Trump’s approval rating currently stands at 21 percent. The poll suggests the gender gap is wide across the political spectrum and goes beyond the Hispanic community.
Ultimately, the findings of this poll are a significant shift in traditionally democratic voting patterns among Hispanics and a reminder of just how critical every single vote is in this election. Trump’s success in winning the Hispanic vote could play a major role in the election outcome.
For now, it remains to be seen if the Trump campaign’s efforts to garner the Hispanic vote will be successful. However, it is clear that the president has made gains in this key demographic and is presenting a strong challenge that could have ripple effects on the election results.
