By Adrian Zupp
Arizona and Florida have significant numbers of Hispanic voters.
With 2020 Democratic presidential primaries on their way to those states, Telemundo has released the results of a pair of surveys they conducted with Latino voters in those states who are likely to vote.
The information could prove interesting to Spanish-language radio and TV C-Suiters.
Where will the political ad dollars come from for Hispanic media, now that Mike Bloomberg and Tom Steyer are out of the race?
Well, Bloomberg’s funneling dollars toward Joe Biden, and English-language ads were seen as early as March 5 in Miami.
Telemundo polling shows a split decision, with the Western U.S.’ total market leanings toward Bernie Sanders carrying over to Latino voters.
Sanders leads Biden 47%-40% in Arizona. However, in Florida Biden leads Sanders with a solid 48%-37% result.
Further, when matched against Republican incumbent Donald Trump in the general election, Biden has a commanding advantage over the president in both states.
Biden leads Trump 58%-38% in Florida and 72%-20% in Arizona.
Sanders runs well against Trump among likely Latino voters in Arizona (68%-22%), but trails Trump by 45%-44% in Florida. This suggests that in key locales including Miami-Dade County, where Cuban-American voters under 40 lean toward Democratic candidates, a more centrist alternative to the president is a stronger choice.
When looking at the Sunshine State in detail, Biden, when matched against Trump, polled strongly across the board among Latinos, winning with men (54%), women (62%), people younger than 50 years (61%), individuals older than 50 years (55%), Puerto Ricans (81%), and Independents (59%).
Not surprisingly, Cubans in Florida are the only demographic group to support Trump, preferring the president by 70%-27% over Biden, and a wider 74%-19% over Sanders.
As home to a majority of historically Republican Cuban voters and a Latino population that broadly rejects socialism, Telemundo’s Florida poll reveals that Sanders’ self-description as a democratic socialist has taken a toll on his popularity with 70% of likely Latino voters in Florida saying they would not vote for a candidate who describes him/herself as a “socialist.”
In Arizona, Telemundo’s survey also found that nearly fifty percent (46%) of respondents want their vote to change the direction of the country by voting Trump out of office. In addition, 52% of likely Latino voters say they feel that Latinos in Arizona are being widely persecuted or discriminated against.
Telemundo’s State of the Latino Vote in Arizona and Florida polls were conducted by Mason-Dixon Polling & Strategy.
Telemundo’s Florida poll was conducted from March 4 to March 7, 2020. A total of 625 registered Latino voters statewide were interviewed live by telephone in Florida. The margin of error for these questions is +/- 4 percentage points.
Telemundo’s Arizona poll was conducted from March 4 to March 6, 2020. A total of 625 registered Latino voters statewide were interviewed live by telephone in Arizona. The margin of error for these questions is +/- 4 percentage points.
— Additional reporting by Adam R Jacobson, in Los Angeles
