President Obama’s base of support among Hispanics and young people is eroding dramatically in the run-up to the 2014 elections.
According to the Pew Research Center, Hispanic voters are upset with the Obama administration over what they perceive to be elevated deportations and failures to enact more lenient immigration reform. Young people, meanwhile, are less than enthused by a president they once supported for his “hope and change” promises.
Youth support for President Obama is down 4% from earlier this year, and he now stands at a net -10% disapproval, with just 43% of millennials supporting him. A significant racial gap has emerged within the millennial voting bloc as well, with just 31% of whites approving of Obama, as opposed to 78% of blacks.
Hispanic identification with the Democratic Party stands at 63%, as opposed to 27% for Republicans-but that latter statistic represents the high-water mark for Republican support since 2006. Overall, Hispanics overwhelmingly say that the Democratic Party “has more concern for Latinos,” with just 10% saying Republicans do. But 35% of Hispanics say they see no difference between the parties on the matter. Only 19% of Hispanic registered voters say they are pleased with the Obama administration’s delay of executive amnesty, while 26% say they are disappointed and 9% say they are angry. Overall, more Hispanics than the general population (43%) say they are happy with the direction of the country.
Most importantly, a full 54% of Hispanics say that they would vote for a candidate who disagrees with them on immigration policy; only 36% say they would not. That explains a jump for Republicans in this election cycle despite the fact that they have overwhelmingly endorsed border enforcement over amnesty. The poll does show that 46% of Hispanics favor an amnesty plan, with 38% prioritizing both border security and a pathway to citizenship, and an additional 14% believe that border security should be the top priority.