A surprising number of young Black and Latino men supported former President Donald Trump in the recent election. Voters Brian Leija and DaSean Gallisaw cited economic policies and unmet Democratic promises as reasons for their choice.
“I am a blue-collar worker,” Leija said. “So, tax breaks for small businesses are ideal for what I do.”
“It’s been a very long time since the Democrats ever really kept their promises to what they’re going to do for the minority communities,” Gallisaw said.
Trump gained significantly more Black and Latino male votes than in 2020. Kamala Harris won majorities among these groups, but not enough to surpass Trump’s gains.
LULAC CEO Juan Proaño noted that Trump’s economic message had resonated with Latino men, while Rev. Derrick Harkins saw Trump’s hypermasculine appeal influencing younger Black men.
Young voters saw the economy as a major issue, with many dissatisfied.
“I think it’s important to say that Latinos have a significant impact in deciding who the next president was going to be and reelected Donald Trump,” Proaño said. “(Latino) men certainly responded to the populist message of the president and focused primarily on economic issues, inflation, wages and even support of immigration reform.”
Trump’s image as a strong leader won over more Hispanic voters, with increased approval since 2020. Despite shifts among men of color, Trump’s victory relied on a majority of white voters.
“Men of color are really beginning to emerge as the new swing voters,” HIT Strategies co-founder Terrance Woodbury said. “For a long time, we talked about suburban women and soccer moms who can swing the outcome of elections. Now men of color are really beginning to emerge as that, especially younger men of color, who are less ideological, less tied to a single party, and more likely to swing either between parties or in and out of the electorate,” Woodbury said.
