Experts have said over and over again that Latinos are not a monolith. That’s particularly clear in states like Florida, Nevada and Arizona. We’re currently waiting for results in those last two states, where Latinos have been seriously courted in recent weeks.
“Latino voters are nothing if not assimilate into the mainstream. They care about what other kinds of issues other people care about as well,” columnist Ruben Navarrette said.
He told Straight Arrow News that the Democratic Party has forgotten how to speak to Latino voters and that they’ve taken them for granted.
“They forgot how to listen to us. And they created an opportunity for Republicans now going forward. What will be interesting to watch is can the Republicans keep this level of support? I’m not sure they can, because it just sort of fell into their lap and they don’t quite know what to do with it,” Navarrette said.
“The Democratic Party doesn’t give us credit for or respect us for our complexities, for the fact that we are likely to see issues differently depending on where we live or what generation we belong to. They just see us as baptized Catholic and Democrat, and they expect us to stay that way. That’s not happening,” Navarrette added.
He believes that there is a risk that the monolith conversation could go too far on both sides of the aisle.
“I think that the parties typically are run by the same people. I think there are a bunch of Ivy Leaguers who typically don’t know much about Latinos, they don’t have much exposure to Latinos, they work within a black and white paradigm. Whether you’re got a D after name or an R after name, neither party has done right by Latinos,” Navarrette said.
