Yet, voter engagement still alarmingly low less than three weeks from Election Day

The Latino Community Foundation announced the results of their second California statewide poll of Latino voters ahead of the 2022 Midterm Elections. California’s Latino voters, the second largest voting bloc in the state, can potentially decide the balance of power in Congress. Yet, outreach to them is dismally low and 31% say they are still undecided.

“Latino voters demonstrate a strong commitment to progressive policy issues. Yet, there is such a low level of engagement of these crucial voters by candidates, with only 29% of Latino voters saying they have been contacted and asked to vote,” said Jacqueline Martinez Garcel, CEO of the Latino Community Foundation. “Our democracy is stronger when voters are engaged in every election. Especially considering that Latino voters can determine the balance of power in Congress at a moment in time when we are facing one of the worst inflations in decades and we are still trying to heal and rebuild from the COVID pandemic.”

According to Matt Barreto, co-founder of BSP Research and Professor of Political Science at UCLA, “Two-thirds of Latino registered voters in California say they are certain to vote, but 31% say they are on the fence and not yet certain. If campaigns want to see massive Latino turnout, they need to engage heavily to get out the vote in the final weeks. Over half of California Latinos say they will vote early using a mail ballot and 19% say they will vote early in-person. That leaves just 29% of Latinos who plan to vote on Election Day. Get out the vote starts now.”

The Poll also found:

• 73% said inflation and jobs and the economy are their top concern;
• 80% of Latinos say the cost of living is going up faster than they can keep up, yet Latino voters in California are more likely to say they are optimistic that things are getting better;
• Latinos in California give Democratic candidates a large margin of 58% to 20% for Republicans in the election for U.S. House, unlike national polls that suggest Republicans are making in-roads with Latinos;
• 57% of Latino voters said they had heard or read little to nothing about the Inflation Reduction Act, demonstrating a steep disconnect between policies they overwhelming support and a missed opportunity for the Administration to build goodwill on this historic passed legislation.

Click to download toplines and crosstabs of the poll.

The Latino Community Foundation commissioned the statewide poll of California’s Latino Voters from BSP Research. They surveyed 1,200 Latino registered voters across California for a margin-of-error of +/- 2.8%. The poll was conducted on-line and by phone in English and Spanish at the discretion of the respondent. Interviews were conducted between September 26, 2022 – October 5, 2022.

"This poll represents a unique deep-dive into the California Latino electorate with one of the largest and bilingual sample of Latino voters from across the entire state,” says Gary Segura, President of BSP Research. “The findings clearly show Latinos expect their elected officials to deliver on climate change, affordable housing, immigrant rights and much more. However, the poll also shows that more outreach needs to be done by individual candidates to connect with and convince Latino voters. From ballot measures to the U.S. Congress, Latino voters can be the difference makers, but only if candidates reach out and engage the Latino community."

About the Latino Community Foundation

The Latino Community Foundation is on a mission to unleash the civic and economic power of Latinos in California. LCF has the largest network of Latino philanthropists in the country and has invested $20 million to build Latino civic and political power and leadership in the state. It is the only statewide foundation solely focused on investing in Latino youth and families in California. For more info, please visit: www.latinocf.org.

About BSP Research

BSP Research is a Latino-owned polling, research and analytics firm headquartered in Los Angeles, California, and directed by four PhD-holding political scientists.

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