HispaniC Voters
By: Daniela, Helen, Jordan, and Rasmus
Media discussion of the Latinx impact on the 2020 Election is largely split between two issues: the myth of the “Latinx Vote,” and how to increase Latinx voter turnout. None of the studied media outlets underscored the importance of the Latinx community in the 2020 Election. It is widely recognized that Latinxs, the fastest growing ethnic minority group in the United States, have captured an increasing chunk of the electorate. This fact is routinely brought up in articles about the Latinx vote. Despite the prospect of this power, these media outlets outline how Latinxs today are uninspired by the prospect of either a Trump or Biden presidency. These media outlets all agree that the Latinx vote will not go to whichever candidate has more Latinxs support, but rather to the candidate can get more Latinxs out to the polls. In order to show how the Latinx community is uninspired by the upcoming elections, media outlets frequently cited a piece of data claiming that 60% of Latinx voters in swing states were planning on not voting (New York Times, Los Angeles Times). To present an example of a candidate which adequately mobilized Latinx voters, media outlets such as The New York Times, Los Angeles Times and The Federalist all cited Bernie Sanders, or “Tio Bernie,” as the media pointedly calls him. Members of Sanders’ campaign staff were also frequently interviewed and mined for information on their strategies.
Throughout various media outlets, a majority focused on the Latinx community's reluctance to support Biden due to his lack of outreach to the community, as well as the issue of not enough members of the Latinx community voting. The potential influence of the Latinx vote is broadly covered as a desperate attempt to reach out to a growing population of young Latinx voters who are generally liberal. (The New York Times). Due to a repetitive feeling of neglect by the government and political candidates, many Latinx have lost faith in voting and trust in political candidates' ability to follow through with promises made to the Latinx community. (The Washington Post). However, the media frequently ignore the diversity within the Latinx community. Many media outlets use the term "Latinx" to describe a predominantly Mexican population; with that population being the focus of various media sources, the diversity of the Latinx community is often overlooked, yet is a significant aspect of the Latinx vote. The increasingly older population of Cubans in Florida who predominantly support Trump has the potential to impact the Latinx vote, for example, was only briefly mentioned in one or two articles.
Latinx voters have long been made empty promises by the Democratic and Republican parties. The Latinx vote is often sought after because of the large population of Hispanics in the U.S., and the density of this population in swing states. Considering the importance of their vote during this election in particular, where a projected 32 million Latinx will be eligible to vote, the chosen Latinx speakers for the DNC were surprising. Major political voices for the community, such as Julian Castro and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, were given little to no speaking time. Castro received no time, and AOC received 90 seconds. In addition to this, the media have drawn attention to the fact that the Democratic Party is more concerned with swaying Republican voters rather than growing the electorate, which sends an awful message to Latinx voters.
If Biden wants to win the Latinx vote, he needs to make a greater effort to reach out to the Hispanics who aren’t getting their information through predominantly white media outlets. He needs to put more funding into buying ads in Spanish newspapers, television networks, etc. During this election the media has definitely been covering a lot on Latinx voters due to their large population, but enough isn’t being done by the Biden campaign to reach these voters and ensure that his plans are not empty promises, and that he intends on protecting and advancing the Latinx community.
New York Times, “Why Young Latinx Voters Rallied Behind Sanders,” 3/13/20,Arthur D. Soto-Vásquez. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/13/opinion/bernie-sanders-latinx-vote.html?searchResultPosition=1