Trump's unexpected minority voter support changes US political game
Former president wins back White House with surprising support from Hispanic and Asian voters. Identity politics strategy backfires as minority communities show shifting political preferences
Back in 2016 Steve Bannon made a smart guess: identity politics would hurt Democrats. Now about 8 years later his words became true - Donald Trump beat Kamala Harris in a way nobody expected
The numbers tell an interesting story: while Harris got more white votes Trump got way more Hispanic Asian and other minority votes (a huge 13-point swing among Hispanic voters). Its quite different from what many people thought would happen
Trumps anti-illegal immigration message worked well with legal immigrants: they liked his tough-but-fair approach. One voter Abigail Solorzano whose parents came from Nicaragua explained it well:
You dont know their background; we dont know what theyʼre doing Its scary
The so-called woke agenda didnt work with many minority groups. For example only 4% of Hispanic people use the term “Latinx“ which shows how some progressive ideas dont connect with these communities
The economic side played a big role too - high prices and jobs were top concerns for everyone. Exit polls showed 67% of voters thought the economy was not-so-good which helped Trump win. His message about legal immigration and economic growth hit home with working-class voters of all backgrounds
- Hispanic counties switched to Republican side
- Legal immigrants supported strict border control
- Religious values played a big-role in voting choices
- Cost-of-living worries beat identity politics
Over in Britain similar changes are happening. Kemi Badenoch becoming Conservative leader shows how right-wing parties can appeal to minority voters: its about shared values not identity politics anymore
