Ahead of Super Tuesday in Colorado, Cost of Living, Wages and Health Care Costs Top Concerns for Latino Voters

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DENVER, Colo. — On the eve of Colorado’s Super Tuesday primaries, UnidosUS—the nation’s largest Latino civil rights organization—emphasized the importance Hispanic voters are placing on economic and pocketbook issues, as evidenced by their recent poll on the views of Latino voters nationwide. The largest survey of Hispanic voters released this election cycle, its results highlight the deep concerns about inflation, wages and health care costs which are top of mind for many Latinos as they head to the polls this primary season. 

With at least two highly competitive seats in the U.S. House of Representatives up for election this November, Colorado will play a significant role in shaping the fragile balance of power in Congress for the next year and beyond. One of the fastest-growing groups of voters in the United States, Latinos made up more than one out of every ten Colorado voters in the 2020 presidential election and are positioned to have an even more decisive impact on the outcome in 2024—underscoring the need for candidates to address these voters’ top concerns. 

“Hispanic voters are heavily engaged in presidential elections, with more than 84% of registered Latinos in Colorado casting a ballot in 2020,” said Clarissa Martinez De Castro, Vice President of the UnidosUS Latino Vote Initiative. “Candidates who speak to these top concerns and how they will address them, particularly cost of living, wages, health care costs and gun violence, can build support among these voters.” 

Full results of the poll are available in the UnidosUS Hispanic Electorate Data Hub, a newly released multidimensional platform that provides data and insights on this electorate spanning the last two decades. The following outlines key findings on the Hispanic electorate. 

On The Issues:  

  • Economy: Four of the top five concerns for Hispanic voters nationwide are dominated by economic and pocketbook issues, specifically inflation and the rising cost of living, jobs, healthcare, and housing affordability—which notably rose to the top five concerns for the first time. 
  • Gun violence: Concerns about gun violence remained a top-five issue for Latino voters.  
  • Abortion: 71% of Hispanic voters nationwide oppose efforts to ban abortion or to deprive other people of the right to make that decision for themselves, regardless of their own personal believes on the issue—compared to only 23% who supported such efforts. 
  • Immigration: Immigration rose to become the sixth highest-rated issue priority, with voters reporting specific interest in policies that would provide a pathway to citizenship for DACA recipients and other immigrants with long-standing ties in the United States. 

On Voting:  

  • In 2024, 22% of Latinos in the United States will be voting in a presidential election for the first time.  
  • 38% of the Hispanic electorate nationally will be composed of new voters since Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump faced off in 2016.