Super Tuesday: The Latinx Vote Could Change Everything

Today is a big day for democracy. It is Super Tuesday — 14 states and one U.S. territory will vote in the Democratic Primary — and that means 1,357 delegates will decide which candidate they want to go head-to-head against Donald Trump in the presidential election in November. One of the largest groups to be a deciding factor in all of this is the Latinx community. 

Every election cycle there’s a lot of reports regarding the Latinx vote, and that’s because this group is now the largest minority voting group, according to Pew Research. From 2000 to now, there’s been an 80 percent increase in Latinx voters. Latinx voters make up 13.3 percent of eligible voters, while black voters make up 12 percent. 

Many African-American and Latina/Latino pundits ignoring that Bernie Sanders got 70% of the Latino/Latina/Latinx vote in Las Vegas,that members of the Culinary union voted overwhelmingly for Sanders even as the leadership refused to endorse.The question: what are they afraid of?

— Rosa A. Clemente (@rosaclemente) February 24, 2020

Today, voters in Alabama, America Samoa, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, and Virginia will pretty much determine who the Democratic candidate will be. So while there are many delegates up for grabs, so far it looks like Former Vice President Joe Biden is getting a ton of new endorsements after winning South Carolina this week. However, Sen. Bernie Sanders is ranking close behind, and the Vermont Senator is a favorite among Latinx voters. Yet, still, as we noted yesterday, many Latinx are leaning toward Sen. Elizabeth Warren, including Julian Castro. So who will win? It’s still anyone’s game, but Latinx voters are likely to come out this time in droves. 

There's something happening here

The young Latinx vote is the sleeping giant of American politics

I traveled to East L.A. to learn the secret sauce for how Bernie Sanders tapped in, and how Latinx power could propel him to the White House

My new column https://t.co/zYWSa8UAc1

— Will Bunch (@Will_Bunch) February 28, 2020

“What we’ve been seeing, in 2018 and 2020, is Latinos will vote when they hear a message that resonates with them and when they are reached out to and talked to,” Crystal Zermeño, director of electoral strategy for the project, told NBC News. 

The exciting aspect of this year’s primaries is that Latinx communities stretch beyond California and Texas. Latinx communities have expanded in states including North Carolina, Virginia, Arkansas, Colorado, and Tennessee.

Today is #SuperTuesday which means that 14 states will be voting. That is 1/3rd of delegates for the Democratic party. Make your voice heard. America Chavez says "Go vote!" pic.twitter.com/5axMgpUB0A

— Latinx Geeks 📢 Supports the Strikes (@LatinxGeeks) March 3, 2020

While all of this is excellent news for Latinx, it’s important to say that attempts to suppress minority votes are still a huge problem. The Leadership Conference Education Fund reported that 750 polls had been closed in Texas since 2012. Because some consider Texas to be a red state, closing polls make it harder for Democratic minorities to go out and vote because their closest voting area is now closed, and they cannot get to a poll that is farther from them. That means Republicans gain strength when Democratic minorities can’t vote. 

So if Republicans are trying to prevent you from voting, that means your vote is threatening to them. What more incentive do you need? Go out and vote!