Monica Hernandez has served as president of the First Coast Hispanic Chamber of Commerce for the last six years. | Will Brown
Published on November 13, 2024 at 12:02 pm
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Florida was the only state where a majority of Hispanic voters supported President-elect Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
That’s according to polling released Tuesday by UnidosUS, the largest Latino civil rights organization in America. UnidosUS surveyed more than 3,700 Latinos across the country, including more than 500 in Florida.
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Inflation, jobs, housing affordability as well as health care costs were the top issues for Latino voters nationwide and in Florida.
Clarissa Martínez de Castro is vice president of the Latino Vote Initiative. She says a lack of voter outreach and engagement from Democrats played a role in Florida’s Latinos trending toward Trump.
“Not only do you have a population that has historically trended more pro-Republican, the Cuban population. But, even as the community has diversified in Florida, you have also seen a permanent campaign from the Republican side unmatched by the Democratic side,” she said.
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Hispanic voters in Duval
In Duval County, 33% of Hispanic voters are registered Democrats compared with 28% Republicans. An additional 34% of local Hispanic voters are not registered with either party.
UnidosUS partnered with the First Coast Hispanic Chamber of Commerce during the campaign season to encourage some of the 40,000 Hispanic voters to participate in the 2024 election.
Hispanic voters represented 7% of Duval County’s electorate in this year’s election. That number is expected to rise ahead of the 2026 gubernatorial election as more Hispanic residents flock to Northeast Florida.
