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Vox
2 minutes ago
- Vox
Republicans are making a very simple, unforced mistake with Latino voters
is a correspondent at Vox, where he covers the Democratic Party. He joined Vox in 2022 after reporting on national and international politics for the Atlantic's politics, global, and ideas teams, including the role of Latino voters in the 2020 election. A boy holds a flag a peaceful protest and vigil where six workers were taken by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement on June 18, 2025, in Pasadena, all the talk of a new, lasting multiracial coalition that helped elect Donald Trump, there are clues that this support may be wavering, particularly among Latino voters. Polls show the president's approval rating with this group has plummeted since the last election, and a third of Latinos who voted for him say they are unlikely to back a Republican candidate in the next one. This collapse happened for a few reasons. Latino voters are not only souring on the president generally, but also on his handling of key issues like immigration and the economy — the very topics that boosted his support with them initially. And curiously, this decline in support for the president isn't translating into a surge for Democrats. Instead, many Latino voters express dissatisfaction with both parties. Today, Explained Understand the world with a daily explainer, plus the most compelling stories of the day. Email (required) Sign Up By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Notice . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. This shifting dynamic suggests that both parties have been operating on flawed assumptions over the last few years. Democrats made the mistake of treating Latinos as a monolithic group, focusing on social justice issues while failing to address economic concerns that were pushing these voters toward the GOP. Now, Republicans may be poised to make a similar mistake. They have largely viewed these voters as Republicans-in-waiting, banking on a rightward drift that they assume extends to the most extreme parts of the conservative social agenda. This approach risks alienating a large segment of the Latino electorate. Ultimately, both parties are learning a crucial lesson: Demographics aren't destiny, and they need a more nuanced understanding of this diverse and rapidly changing group of voters. The Democrats' shrinking Latino majority Over the last decade, Trump has remade the American electorate with the help of Latino voters. Back in 2016, his highly racialized and polarizing election victory resulted in one of the worst performances with Latino voters in modern history, winning fewer than three in 10 Hispanic and Latino voters, well below average for Republican candidates. But splits began to develop among Latino communities in the US over the next few years. Working class, non-college educated, and male Latinos, as well as those from Florida and the Southwest, began to drift away from Democrats, particularly at the national level. They were more intrigued by Republican pitches centered around the economy, small business growth, and affordability. At the same time, Democrats were hesitant to admit they had an issue with the Latino population, quibbling over messaging and campaign investments while missing the plot. By the time of the 2020 election, Trump had managed to not just recover his party's losses in 2016, but expand on them, shrinking the Democratic advantage with Latinos by nearly 20 points. Democrats, it turns out, misread Latino voters' priorities and beliefs, gradually losing support from the peak they had from 2012 to 2016 (when Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton enjoyed 40-point margins). The party largely approached Latinos as 'voters of color,' marginalized minorities who could be mobilized through appeals to identity, immigrant solidarity, and social justice. For some time, this worked, but Latinos weren't behaving like a monolithic group. Instead, Latinos would fracture and become more dissimilar during this time, with various kinds of evangelicals, border residents, naturalized immigrants, and working class Latinos remaining or becoming more conservative as the Democratic Party and its white, college-educated base became more progressive. Particularly on issues like crime, immigration and the border, and gender roles and identity, the liberal positions that Democrats took — or were portrayed to take — were out of step with the views of many conservative and moderate Latinos from 2020 to 2024. In 2021, the Pew Research Center found that the most liberal, educated, and politically engaged Democrats exerted outsized influence on their party. By the 2024 election, this created an opening for Republicans, as Latino voters expressed greater openness to Trump and the GOP's stances on the economy, immigration, and abortion. By then, their votes had begun to follow some of their beliefs. Republican gains came quickly As Democrats stumbled, Republicans stuck to a different approach: treating Latinos as a new kind of white voter. They doubled down on a hawkish and xenophobic immigration message that seemed to resonate with a large minority of Latinos, spoke of the border as an issue of crime and public safety, and talked nonstop about prices and affordability to exploit the lack of trust in Democrats' stewardship of the economy. Republicans sought to make the old Reagan line that, 'Hispanics are conservatives, [but] they just don't know it yet,' come true by hammering home the idea that Kamala Harris and the Democratic Party were too radical and out of touch. This approach worked. Latinos concerned with immigration and the economy shifted to Republicans, and Trump posted a double-digit boost in support among Latinos, shrinking the Democratic advantage another 20 points. Continued Latino support is not a given An array of data suggest that this advantage is looking more short-lived, largely because Republicans aren't taking into account the nuances of Latino voters. The GOP still did not win a majority of Latinos last year — and much of the boost was from disaffected Democrats or more moderate, disengaged Latinos who don't have the same strong ideological leanings as the primarily white MAGA base. Latino voters are rapidly changing, existing as both a racial minority and an assimilating, formerly immigrant generation. The most recent evidence for this divergence comes from two research projects undertaken by the Democratic-aligned Equis Research group. In the spring, they tracked growing dissatisfaction among Latino voters with Trump's handling of the economy, cost of living, and immigration. Even among what Equis calls 'Biden defectors,' those former Democrats who switched to supporting Trump in 2024, a slight majority were beginning to turn on Trump's economic policies. This dynamic extended to immigration, where an overwhelming majority of all Latino voters thought the administration's actions were 'going too far and targeting the types of immigrants who strengthen our nation.' Some 36 percent of Trump-voting Latinos said the same thing, and a majority of Biden defectors, some 64 percent, felt the same way. This suggests some degree of remaining immigrant solidarity among these swingier, evolving segments of the Latino electorate and disapproval over how mass deportations and aggressive anti-immigrant policies will affect law-abiding immigrants and their families. Nearly two-thirds of Latinos in Equis' polling believe that the Trump administration's actions 'will make it difficult for hardworking Latinos to feel safe, by increasing racial profiling and harassing all Latinos regardless of immigration status.' In other words, there is a limit to what various kinds of Latino voters are willing to stomach. The same dynamic is becoming more clear with regards to the economy, where Latino voters, and new Trump voters specifically, are unhappy with the state of the economy. Biden defectors, Equis finds, are net negative on Trump's economic policies: -6 percent of support in May and -8 percent in July. Whether this dynamic not only hurts the GOP but also helps Democrats is unclear. Although many Latino voters still believe Republicans favor the wealthy over the working class, this long-standing sentiment is no longer pushing them toward the Democratic Party. Instead, they increasingly distrust both parties on this question. But together, these signs suggest that the GOP is going too far with their policy and ideological mission in Trump's second term, turning off the new converts they won to their coalition over the last 10 years. Where the parties go from here The two major parties are making errors with Latino voters. Both have to moderate their policy and ideological approaches while bringing more nuance to how they campaign. Latinos do have some things that bind them together, and they are not just like white voters who can ignore discrimination and scapegoating and uprooting of their extended community's lives (as immigration enforcement is showing). At the same time, they need to be talked to with more nuance. Democrats tried to do this in 2024, moderating on immigration, dropping the usage of the term 'Latinx,' and investing in hyper-specific, hyper-local campaigning with various kinds of Mexican Americans, Cuban Americans, Puerto Ricans, and others. But there was only so much campaigning they could do when facing a wave of anti-Biden, anti-incumbent electoral sentiment. Republicans, meanwhile, toned down immigration talk and zeroed in on subgroups of the Latino electorate in battleground states in 2020. They appealed to religious and ideological conservatives — Cuban, South American, and Puerto Rican communities in Florida, as well as border communities in Arizona, Nevada, and Texas. Some of this nuanced campaigning did carry over to 2024, but it focused more on young and male Latinos in general. And 2024 saw a return to a kind of dog-whistle, racialized, and anti-immigrant scapegoating, which helped the anti-incumbent tide.
Newsweek
2 minutes ago
- Newsweek
Nationwide Anti-Trump Protests Planned For Labor Day: What to Know
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A series of nationwide anti-Donald Trump protests are set to take place on Labor Day. 50501, a group that emerged in early 2025 and is short for "50 protests, 50 states, one day," called their latest series of protests "Workers Over Billionaires." Newsweek contacted the organizers by email to comment on this story. Why It Matters Since assuming office in January, there have been multiple coordinated protests from different groups against Trump with people speaking out against his cuts to government departments, strict immigration policies and handling of the economy among other issues. August 16, 2025: Protesters gathered on the south steps of the Texas State Capitol for Fight the Trump Takeover, National Day of Action, and redistricting rally. Austin, Texas. August 16, 2025: Protesters gathered on the south steps of the Texas State Capitol for Fight the Trump Takeover, National Day of Action, and redistricting rally. Austin, Texas. Mario Cantu/CSMCredit Image: © Mario Cantu/Cal Sport Media) (Cal Sport Media via AP Images One protest took place on the Memorial Day weekend, while others targeted Flag Day and Trump's birthday. Another took place in Scotland when protesters demonstrated against Trump's recent visit to the country. Protests will put pressure on the president and weaken the extent to which he can say he commands broad support. However, the protests are not universal either and the President is still popular with his supporters. What To Know The protest takes place on Labor Day, a federal holiday dating back to 1894 recognizing workers' contributions to America. This year, it falls on September 1. On the website, the organizers listed the following demands: Stop the billionaire takeover corrupting our government. Protect and defend Medicaid, Social Security, and other programs for working people. Fully funded schools, and health care and housing for all. Stop the attacks on immigrants, Black, indigenous, trans people, and all our communities. Invest in people not wars." They posted a picture of a map detailing where some of the protests will take place. A map shows some of the protests taking place on Labor Day. A map shows some of the protests taking place on Labor Day. What People Are Saying Speaking to Newsweek, Mark Shanahan who teaches American politics at the University of Surrey in the U.K. said: "Trump won't be too worried about protests. He never has to run for election again and doesn't need to win round those who oppose him. Protests won't surprise him. Close to half the country didn't vote for him in 2024 and rather than use his presidency to heal the nation, he has gone out of his way through DOGE, ICE, deploying The National Guard and a slew of divisive Executive Orders, to fan the flames of division. "It will play into his narrative of ongoing American carnage for these protests to get out of hand and turn violent," he added. "Trump loves a fight and to cast himself as some kind of blonde avenger. So, in order to have any impact, these protests need to take a different line. The one thing Trump really hates is being laughed at. He despises being humiliated. Governor Gavin Newsom of California is having an impact through his memes trolling Trump. They're clearly getting under the president's notoriously thin skin. If 50501 can build on that vibe and use humor to expose some of the Administration's failings, they may prick Trump's pomposity in a way that could damage Republican chances in the Midterms next year." A statement posted on the protest's website read: "Labor and community are planning more than a barbecue on Labor Day this year because we have to stop the billionaire takeover. Billionaires are stealing from working families, destroying our democracy, and building private armies to attack our towns and cities. "Just like any bad boss, the way we stop the takeover is with collective action. We are May Day Strong, working people rising up to stop the billionaire takeover—not just through the ballot box or the courts, but through building a bigger and stronger movement. "On Sept. 1 we will continue the movement we launched on May 1st. Thousands of communities across the country are taking a stand on Labor Day, join us!" What Happens Next In a separate protest, the AFL-CIO is organizing nationwide rallies on Labor Day to build support for workers. More protests against the Trump administration are likely to take place as his presidency continues.
Washington Post
2 minutes ago
- Washington Post
The White House is making the homeless crisis worse
Jacob Fuller is an organizer and policy writer based in Philadelphia. In asserting control over the D.C. police force and deploying National Guard troops and federal agents, President Donald Trump has named removing homeless encampments as a top priority. If only he brought this level of urgency to preventing people from becoming homeless in the first place. Over the past decade, the number of homeless individuals has increased each year, at a rate that has only accelerated. Last year, rates jumped by 18 percent, totaling 771,480 unhoused individuals in the United States. And the situation is likely to get worse before it gets better. Cuts to health care and food programs, soaring housing costs, and newer proposals by the Trump administration to pare back housing assistance all threaten to worsen homelessness — not just in Washington, but around the country. For most individuals and families, homelessness is a temporary situation — typically resolved within weeks or days. Programs to prevent and quickly resolve housing crises matter, as prolonged experiences with homelessness can make individual cases even harder to address. Homelessness in the United States might feel like an intractable problem, but it has not always been on an upward trajectory. Following the 2008 financial crash that led to mass unemployment and housing insecurity, President Barack Obama signed the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing Act into law. Among its many features, it authorized $2.2 billion for programs focused on quickly putting people back into homes and keeping at-risk people from sliding into homelessness in the first place. The economy was hit hard by the recession, but from 2010 to 2016, homelessness decreased yearly, ultimately achieving a 15 percent reduction nationally, with veteran homelessness cut in half. Federally backed housing initiatives were widely credited with helping drive the trend. These gains were already fragile and contingent on appropriate funding levels for effective programs, but the spread of covid-19 kicked the problem into high gear. As housing costs skyrocketed and inflation soared, rates of homelessness followed, especially as pandemic-era aid ran out. Housing costs remain at record levels, and rates of consumer debt have soared, cutting the ability of millions to save money for a crisis. Now, only months into the second Trump administration, what was already a crisis shows signs of developing into a total calamity. In budget recommendations for 2026, the Department of Housing and Urban Development proposed slashing federal rental assistance by 40 percent, functionally eliminating voucher programs and a two-year time limit on federal rental assistance, putting as many as 1.4 million Americans at risk of losing their homes. In my conversations with experts working in homeless services across the nation, it's clear we are shockingly unprepared for what's coming. 'Right now, we're in pretty terrifying times in terms of not knowing what's going to happen to our federal grants,' said Haven Wheelock, a harm-reduction manager at the Oregon-based nonprofit Outside In. And though the state's funding might theoretically help fill in the gaps, its legislature is bracing for cuts to Medicaid that will further strain budgets. Some of these changes might not show up in federal statistics at first glance. According to Dennis Culhane, professor of social policy at the University of Pennsylvania, a large degree of the observed 2024 increase in homelessness was driven by Republican governors shipping migrants to sanctuary cities that moved them into homeless shelters before they could be transitioned to other housing. With the migrant crisis receding, he predicted, those numbers will drop. But chronic homelessness — extended periods of homelessness typically defined as lasting a year or longer — has gone up significantly and is more at risk. From 2020 to 2024, the number of individuals experiencing chronic homelessness increased by 38 percent, and getting them back into homes is significantly harder than resolving temporary or at-risk cases. Prolonged homelessness can often lead to drug use, which prevents access to services that require sobriety to qualify and increases the likelihood of traumatic brain injuries that could impact an individual's ability to receive care. Though these measures would probably devastate individuals at risk of homelessness, they would also be catastrophic to the communities where they live. In cities, homelessness has been shown to contribute to decreased foot traffic to downtown areas where it's perceived to be high, might decrease ridership of public transportation, and can threaten public health and safety. People in cities know what it's like to see a sudden increase in people experiencing mental health and substance crises, and how even small numbers of unhoused people can change the perception of a neighborhood. 'When they begin self-medicating, they begin this cycle where they may end up in an unstable space, both mentally and environmentally, [and] that will negatively impact the entire community as a whole,' said Sarah Laurel, executive director at Philadelphia-based nonprofit Savage Sisters. She expressed concern for those currently in her recovery program because getting kicked off Medicaid will mean many might go without crucial medication. We don't have to let this happen — even modest investments can help make a difference. New visions such as the pro-housing 'abundance' movement, as well as a rise in candidates making affordability a central issue, present possibilities for a brighter future with more accessible routes to renting or owning a home. But investment in new and affordable housing is only one part of the picture. To help ensure that individuals who find themselves displaced can quickly bounce back, government assistance programs such as 'housing first' strategies, rental aid and vouchers must be renewed and expanded.
