Podcast: Latino Voters and the GOP Presidential Candidates – Economic Concerns Outweigh Faith and Religion

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Immigrants are a growing force in New York politics. (Photo: Mockstar/flickr)

In this Feet in Two Worlds podcast, La Opinión senior political writer and columnist Pilar Marrero breaks down a new poll released by impreMedia and Latino Decisions analyzing how religion and faith are likely to impact voting decisions for Latino voters. We also hear from Matt Barreto of Latino Decisions. Listen:

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Moral issues rank very low in Latino voters’ minds, while issues like the economy, jobs, taxes and minimum wage are far more important, a recent poll shows.

The finding contradicts Ronald Reagan’s famous statement that “Hispanics are Republicans. They just don’t know it yet.”

Many Republicans insist that Latinos are “naturals” to join the party because of their conservative philosophy, family values, religion and their entrepreneurial spirit.

But the latest poll by impreMedia and Latino Decisions show the majority (53 percent) of these citizens said their own religion does not have much influence on which candidate they choose, while 40 percent said it does.

Only 23 percent said their own religion has a “big impact,” on their support for candidates, while 19 percent said the candidate’s religion has a big impact. The only exception is among Latinos who are registered Republcans, with 47 percent saying their own religion does have a big impact on their election choices.

For additional numbers and analysis of the poll numbers listen to the podcast.

Feet in Two Worlds podcasts are supported by the New York Community Trust and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation with additional support from the Mertz Gilmore Foundation. Fi2W podcasts are also supported in part by WNYC Radio and the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism.