Poll shows Latino voters favor a good economy over political ties
Published Aug 17, 2026 2:31 PM A sheet of voter stickers is seen inside a polling place in California. ( David McNew / Getty Images ) Listen15:57 Latest CA Latino poll favors. . .
Published Aug 17, 2026 2:31 PMA sheet of voter stickers is seen inside a polling place in California. (David McNew/Getty Images)Listen15:57Latest CA Latino poll favors Democrats over RepublicansGuests: Mike Madrid, author, Republican political consultant and founder of the Latino Working Class Project, and David Binder, founder of David Binder Research. Topline:Recent polling from the Latino Working Class Project found that Republican support among California Latinos has dropped, with issues like cost-of-living moving more favorably toward Democrats. Two of the researchers involved in the poll joined host Larry Mantle onAirTalk, LAist’s daily news show, to discuss the results. Cost-of-living:Latinos favored Democrats by 34% when it came to the question about who's better handling cost-of-living. “ It is the economy, cost of living and affordability that is, by a far measure, the issue driving Latino voters and Latino sentiments,” said Mike Madrid, Republican political consultant and founder of the Latino Working Class Project. More support for Dems? No. This does not mean Latino voters are completely satisfied with how Democrats are running things in California. "They are just as unhappy with Democrats,” said David Binder, founder of David Binder Research, which helped conduct the poll. Keep up with LAist. If you're enjoying this article, you'll love our daily newsletter, The LA Report. Each weekday, catch up on the 5 most pressing stories to start your morning in 3 minutes or less. What this means for the gubernatorial race:An overwhelming amount of Latino voters are supporting Xavier Becerra over Steve Hilton, 72% to 24%. ”If Xavier Becerra wins the election in November, it'll be incumbent upon him to prove that he is also working on behalf of Latino voters and all working class voters to help bring down costs and make things more affordable,” Binder said. One year ago,Congress voted to defund public media,eliminating a critical $1. 7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong. You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead,we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities. If this story helped you,please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below. Make your tax-deductible donation today