Anxiety over the economy is high for Latinos; and less than half report knowing about key policies in place to address key issues. Democrats have work to do.

The Latino Community Foundation and BSP Research announced the results of their California statewide poll of 1,200 Latino voters, the largest sample of California Latinos to date ahead of the 2022 Midterms. As the largest ethnic voting group, California Latino voters will be a critical voting bloc that will decide the balance of power in Congress in this year’s midterms. Though Latinos hold progressive policy positions, those views are yet to be reflected in enthusiasm for candidates in the upcoming election.

“Latino voters will be key in a half-dozen competitive Congressional districts from Orange County up to the San Joaquin Valley, and these voters are anxious about the economy and its effect on their families and livelihood,” said Jacqueline Martinez Garcel, CEO of the Latino Community Foundation. “More must be done to engage our communities on the issues closest to their hearts and their pocketbooks.”

Democrats appear to face a considerable mobilization challenge in 2022.

“This poll shows that Latino voters in California still lean heavily in favor of progressive policy solutions, but Democrats are underperforming the 2022 ballot because Latinos report very low levels of information about what both political parties are currently doing,” said Matt Barreto, President of BSP Research and UCLA Professor. “While it is still early in the cycle, there needs to be a massive investment in voter outreach and education to convert undecided Latino voters into committed voters. Candidates who can convince Latinos they are fighting for them, will win their vote come November.”

Economic Worries—Latino voters in California cite cost of living, the economy, and cost of housing as the top three issues they want elected officials to address. 64% strongly agree that the cost of living is going up faster than their wages can keep up.

Progressive Agenda—On public policy issues, California Latinos continue to report 3-to-1 support, or higher, for progressive policy solutions on issues from housing, climate change, immigration, expanding Internet access, and childcare.

Low Connections to Current Policies—An overwhelming share of Latino voters report they have heard very little about key legislation that President Biden has signed:

• 52% of Latino voters have heard some or a lot while 48% have heard little-to-nothing on trillion dollar plans to help the economy and Covid recovery.
• 57% say they have heard little-to-nothing about the Bipartisan Infrastructure plan passed in November 2021

Vote Intention—As California Latinos will be a key voting bloc in a half-dozen competitive Congressional districts from Orange County up to the San Joaquin Valley, outreach and engagement by political parties on their plans and accomplishments for the Latino community will be critical.

• In an important warning sign for candidates courting the Latino vote, just 63% of Latino registered voters state they are certain to vote in the November elections, lower than comparable numbers four years ago.
• For the Senate, Democrats pull 48% support versus 18% for a Republican challenger, and 34% undecided.

Voting Rights/Access—Latino voters are very supportive of voting rights reforms that will guarantee equal voting rights and fair representation with over 70% supporting automatic voter registration; expanding voting machines to reduce wait times at polling places; and importantly, 80% of Latinos say that spreading false information about elections should be a federal crime.

Click to download toplines and crosstabs of poll.

The Latino Community Foundation commissioned a statewide poll of California’s Latino Voters in advance of the June primary election. The poll was conducted by BSP Research on behalf of the LCF and interviewed 1,200 Latino registered voters across California for a margin-of-error of +/- 2.83%. To assure sufficient sample of Latino voters from the Central Valley (n=250), an oversample was collected there. The poll was conducted on-line and by phone in English and Spanish at the discretion of the respondent. The final sample was weighted to ensure representativeness of the final sample compared to most recent Census CPS estimates for Latino registered voters in California. Interviews were conducted between March 20, 2022 and April 16, 2022.

About the Latino Community Foundation

The Latino Community Foundation is on a mission to unleash the civic and economic power of Latinos in California. LCF has the largest network of Latino philanthropists in the country and has invested $20 million to build Latino civic and political power and leadership in the state. It is the only statewide foundation solely focused on investing in Latino youth and families in California. For more info, please visit: www.latinocf.org

About BSP Research

BSP Research is a Latino-owned polling, research and analytics firm headquartered in Los Angeles, California, and directed by four PhD-holding political scientists.

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