Posted on 10/22/2024 6:25:27 PM PDT by 11th_VA
LAS VEGAS, Oct 22, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - Las Vegas market worker Maria Salinas believes Democrats have failed their traditional Latino supporters for too long, and -- like many others in this key voting bloc -- is ready to vote for Donald Trump for the first time.
"I think Trump can change things a little," she said, speaking to AFP at the juice stand she runs in the electoral battleground state of Nevada.
The Democrats offer "promises and promises... but nothing changes for us," said Salinas, whose relatives have been waiting for years to receive the legal right to move to the United States.
"This time I'm going to vote for Trump to see if he helps us."
Latinos are the second-largest ethnic group in the United States, and represent 22 percent of voters in Nevada.
That share has grown rapidly to become a vital factor in the southwestern swing state's elections, as thousands of immigrants are lured each year by the promise of work at Las Vegas's flashy casinos and hotels.
Democrats have won every presidential election in Nevada since 2008. But barely two weeks before this year's election, Harris leads Trump in Nevada by just half a point in polling averages.
"I've never understood why they always insist that Latinos have to be Democrats," said Las Vegas restaurant owner Javier Barajas.
"The Democrats have never helped us at all," adds the Mexican man, who crossed the border in the 1980s and ended up by accident in the gambling metropolis.
Barajas built his gastronomic empire from scratch, but says the highlight of his "American Dream" story was hosting both Trump and President Joe Biden at his restaurants earlier this year.
Shaking hands with Biden -- just before he stepped down as the Democratic nominee -- was "very pleasant, an honor."
But meeting Trump "was more than an honor, because he is the right person for this country," said Barajas.
The restaurateur proudly shows off a pair of gold-colored sneakers bearing a Trump logo -- a gift from the former president's visit.
With this election, for the first time, Barajas is ready to publicly call himself a Republican voter.
"Now, yes, I say it. Because I am very upset with the Democrats and all their promises," he said.
"It's time to tell them, 'OK, enough. We do not agree with you.' They need to take us more seriously."
- 'The criminals' -
While Latinos in the United States overall continue to lean toward the Democratic Party, that national margin has narrowed.
In 2012, a whopping 71 percent of Latinos voted Democrat, compared to 27 percent Republican.
By 2020, the gap had closed to 66 percent Democrat and 32 percent Republican.
A recent UnidosUS poll indicates just 57 percent of Latinos are leaning toward Harris, and 34 percent Trump.
Some Latino voters blame the current Democratic administration for the rising cost of living, and are disaffected by its immigration and border policies.
Barajas, for example, believes Trump's promises of mass deportations if he reaches the White House will only impact "the criminals."
"He will not go after the workers," said Barajas, who spoke personally with Trump for around 10 minutes during the former president's visit.
While he discussed with Trump how many Latinos despise his anti-immigration rhetoric, Barajas does not take it personally. And he is not alone.
A majority of US Hispanics believe Trump is not talking about them when he accuses immigrants of eating pets, being criminals, and "infecting the blood" of the country, according to a major New York Times poll this month.
- 'Immigrant parents' -
Harris's ascension to the Democratic nomination appears to have improved her party's standing in the presidential race among Latinos, at least compared to Biden.
"She is the child of immigrant parents," said Ricardo Fernandez, 54.
He thinks the Democrats just need to communicate their message better to Hispanics.
"Many Latinos are not well informed" about the threat posed by Trump, he added.
"It is really important that the Hispanic community pays attention to what is at stake. We are talking about one candidate who wants to help the middle class, and another whose plan is to strengthen millionaires and billionaires.
"So where does that leave Latinos? How many Latinos are millionaires in the United States?" he asked.
That is a widely held concern in North Las Vegas, a Latino stronghold and home to the sprawling, colorful Broadacres Market.
There, the predominantly Hispanic workers like Salinas express concerns ranging from the economy to struggles with getting legal documents and status.
Carlos Reyes, 57, who runs a clothing stand, says he feels more inclined to support Harris because "she started like everyone else, from the bottom."
But even he remains undecided, just days before he will cast his vote.
the DNC ETM Election Theft Machine will deliver NV to the D party ticket
regardless of how many people vote for Trump or how wide his winning margin is
however, that ETM is mostly entrenched right in Las Vegas strip area....beginning with the hotel workers’ unions....
it should not be too difficult for the R’s to root this cancerous ETM out given how concentrated it is in pretty much one spot
???
I’ve been hearing over the past couple of the days that Virginia and New Mexico are getting competitive as well as New Hampshire. I understand Trump’s focus on the 7 traditional battleground states, by maybe a rally in one or more of these states over the next two weeks might not be a bad idea.
If early voting trends continue, North Carolina, Nevada and Arizona are starting to move out of reach for Kamala.
Making plays for New Mexico and Virginia also has the added feature that the cheating infrastructure in those states is less sophisticated. In the case of Virginia, much of that has to do with measures taken since Younkin has been in office. With New Mexico, I think the DNC has considered it safe for so long that they haven’t invested much time or energy into compromising their voting system. There was never any need to do so because it’s been so reliably Blue for so long..
Yup—the Virginia cheating was massive in 2020—we are talking hundreds of thousands of fake votes.
This could be the big shocker on election night—a Virginia Trump upset called early.
More on Virginia—lets look at the historical numbers:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_presidential_elections_in_Virginia
Hillary received 1.98 million votes in 2016.
Biden received 2.41 million votes in 2020.
That is patently absurd.
What makes it even crazier is that President Trump got more votes in 2020 than he did in 2016:
2016: 1.77 million votes
2020: 1.96 million votes
To put it another way, President Trump got enough votes to match Hillary’s 2016 numbers—but we are supposed to believe he lost the state by more than four hundred thousand votes.
Zero chance—not even close.
And here we have yet again, the MSM deliberately conflating immigrants with illegal invaders.
They are so deceitful and dishonest in their portrayal of the stand of anyone who opposes illegal immigration.
Same with the vaccine stuff. Oppose ONE poorly manufactured and tested experimental injection labeled as a vaccine, and suddenly you're a conspiracy theorist nutjob anti-vaxxer as if you oppose ALL vaccinations.
And here we have yet again, the MSM deliberately conflating immigrants with illegal invaders.
They are so deceitful and dishonest in their portrayal of the stand of anyone who opposes illegal immigration.
Same with the vaccine stuff. Oppose ONE poorly manufactured and tested experimental injection labeled as a vaccine, and suddenly you're a conspiracy theorist nutjob anti-vaxxer as if you oppose ALL vaccinations.
The Democrats really benefitted in 2020 from Covid - not only because it was used as a tool to institute rules that made voting less secure, but because all of the lockdowns helped to increase turnout from normally low propensity voters, as such voters were easier to reach and easier to motivate.
That environment no longer exists today, which is why many first-time voters who voted for Biden in 2020 aren’t voting this year, as early voting numbers are indicating. Virginia is poised to benefit from both, a more secure voting infrastructure and depressed Democratic turnout.
Uh-huh.
I would have to say at this moment in time that we hold our talk until Tuesday night, November 5th.
I don’t doubt maybe in the bottom as well.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.