Before the election, both Republicans and the media talking heads denigrated the Hispanic vote. They said that Hispanics would not show up to vote in the midterm election, and those that did vote would split their votes between Democrats and Republicans (not giving either party an advantage).
They were wrong on both counts. Hispanic voters showed up in record numbers to vote in the election, and their votes were cast decisively for the Democrats. Hispanic voters helped the Democrats to win a huge advantage in the House of Representatives. And their votes likely helped Democrats flip Senate seats in Arizona and Nevada, and almost do the same in Texas.
While it is true that Hispanics have given Republicans good support in some past elections, that did not happen in this one. About 74% voted for Democrats. Why? The charts above (from the Latino Decisions Election Eve Poll) give us a pretty clear picture of why.
They disapprove of the job Trump is doing by a 39 point margin. About 44% think Trump is a racist and another 33% believe he has negatively harmed minorities. They support DACA by a 76 point margin. By a 59 point margin, they believe Trump's policies will set back gains made by minorities. And by an equal 59 point majority, they believe Trump and the GOP is engaging in toxic rhetoric that will divide the nation.
Those are overwhelmingly bad numbers for the Republicans, and it signals another disaster for the GOP in 2020, when Hispanics will probably vote in even larger numbers.
Hispanics have found their voting voice, and with Trump in charge of the Republican Party (and the GOP base loving his hate talk), that's bad news for the Republican Party.
