Will The Latino Vote Tip Elections THIS Year?
Two takeaways from this commentary: one, I like the sarcasm in the capitalized "THIS" on the headline, and two, the question of the Latino vote seems to rest on the shoulders of Latino millennials, who went to the polls at one-third the number that registered to vote.
In more than 20 years of Hispanic marketing, I’ve heard this line over and over: The Latino vote could tip the elections this year. It’s true the Latino vote has helped tremendously for both Democrats and Republicans as Latinos swayed the elections of George W. Bush both as Texas governor and then president in his race against Democrat Al Gore. They were even a force for Hilary Clinton, who secured over 60% of the Latino vote.
However, according to the University of Southern California’s Program for Environmental and Regional Equity, young Latinos are not showing up to vote. The USC study says that just 43% of Latinos 18-29 registered to vote and, of those who registered, only one-third actually voted in 2016.
The study also states that Latino Millennials’ turnout in 2016 was less than African-Americans and Anglos of the same cohort, who voted at 48% and 44%, respectively.
