A new poll of Hispanic voters demonstrates the huge boost that President Obama’s recent policy announcement on immigration has given to his re-election chances.
Latinos were displeased with the president’s immigration policies before his announcement, primarily because his administration has deported more than 1.1 million people, the highest number for any president since the 1950s. A poll earlier this year found that 53 percent of Latinos were less enthusiastic about Obama than in 2012 and 41 percent were less enthusiastic because of his deportation policies. But after Obama last week revealed that was signing an executive order giving a two-year reprieve to Latinos under 30 who had been in the country more than five years and had a clean record, the new poll by Latino Decisions and Univision News reveals that their views have changed.
The poll was done of nearly 800 Hispanic registered voters in five key battleground states: Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Nevada and Virginia. The poll asked how Obama’s announcement had affected their views and 40 percent said it would make them more enthusiastic about Obama, compared to 14 percent who were less enthusiastic, a net enthusiasm advantage of +35 points.
While most analysts, particularly Republicans, will point out that Latinos who are U.S. citizens and registered U.S. voters are much less concerned about immigration and deportation policies than the mainstream media seems to think—and in fact list the economy as their number one issue, just like everybody else—the Obama campaign has to be encouraged that his executive order could enliven his Hispanic support and give it much-needed energy.
