Harris erases Trump’s gains with Hispanic voters in new poll

Vice President Kamala Harris is erasing former President Donald Trump‘s gains with Hispanic voters, according to a poll.

Hispanic voters have been a crucial part of the Democratic Party‘s coalition for decades, but Republicans have made some inroads with them in recent elections. Polls suggested that Trump was winning over more Hispanic voters, compared with President Joe Biden, ahead of the November election.

However, Harris may be winning back some of these voters, according to a poll from The New York Times and Siena College.

The survey, conducted among 1,142 registered voters from July 22 to 24, shows Harris winning Hispanic voters by 19 points over the former president (57 percent to 38 percent). In June, a New York Times/Siena College poll found Biden winning Hispanic voters by only a single point (45 percent to 44 percent).

The new survey broadly found that Harris is gaining ground against Trump, compared with Biden, who ended his presidential campaign this past Sunday following weeks of pressure from Democratsconcerned about his ability to win the election amid concerns about his age and low poll numbers.

Democrats quickly rallied behind Harris, who received Biden’s endorsement. She has secured enough delegates to win the party’s presidential nomination at next month’s Democratic National Convention. Her supporters believe she is more capable than Biden was of running a robust campaign over the next several months and has already generated significant enthusiasm among the party’s voter base.

While Harris’ polling before Biden’s withdrawal was roughly on par with, or trailing, the president’s, several surveys released in recent days suggest she is winning over voters who weren’t backing him.

The Times poll found that Harris was tied with Trump among registered voters, with each candidate receiving 42 percent. Among likely voters, Harris held a 1-point lead over Trump (44 percent to 43 percent).

Support for other candidates has dropped. Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. received 9 percent of the vote in June but only 5 percent in the July survey. Green Party candidate Jill Stein received 2 percent of the vote in the June poll but less than 1 percent in July.

Harris’ gains among Hispanic voters still put her behind Biden in 2020, when he won the group by 33 points (65 percent to 32 percent), according to a Times exit poll. In 2016, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton won Hispanic voters by 36 points (65 percent to 29 percent), according to a Times exit poll.

Increasing strength with Hispanic voters could benefit Harris this November in key swing states, such as Arizona and Nevada, that have a higher Hispanic population.

NEWSWEEK