New UnidosUS Bipartisan Poll: Texas Hispanic Voters Feeling Economically Strained, Concerned about their Safety and Ready to Vote — With a Clear Message for Candidates

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President Trump’s Latino support continues to erode with 20% of Texans who voted for him in 2024 saying they wouldn’t today; 77% of Hispanic voters say they are “certain” or “almost certain” to vote in November

WASHINGTON — Texas Latino voters are feeling economically strained, overwhelmingly concerned about Congress’ lack of leadership and preparing to head to the polls in November, according to a sweeping new bipartisan survey released today by UnidosUS, the nation’s largest Latino civil rights and advocacy organization.

The new UnidosUS Bipartisan Poll of Hispanic Voters: The Road to the 2026 Midterms makes clear that any elected leader or candidate who ignores the surging sentiment of the Latino electorate, the nation’s second-largest voting-age population, does so at their own peril.

The survey — the largest of its kind, polling 3,000 registered Latino voters nationally, including 500 in Texas of whom 300 are in battleground congressional districts — paints an urgent and unmistakable picture: Latino families are living under severe economic strain, losing faith in their constitutional protections and holding Washington directly accountable.

“Texas calls itself a pro-growth state, but for who? Working families feel burdened every time they pay over $4 a gallon for gas and higher prices at the grocery store,” said UnidosUS Texas State Director Eric Holguín. “Families are focused on wages, jobs, health care, housing and the rising cost of living because those are the pressures shaping daily life across the state. Too many Texans are still blocked from affordable health coverage, higher wages and basic support at the same time community organizations are being asked to fill gaps that policy choices keep widening. Leaders should make it easier to get covered, earn enough, stay housed and support a family. Right now, too many barriers are being left in place.”

“Across Texas, organizations on the ground are seeing more families ask for help with food, rent, health care, job stability, and basic bills,” said VIDA Executive Director Felida Villarreal. “These are working households, but work alone is not enough when costs keep rising and supports are being cut or stretched thin. The pressure does not stop with one family; it affects classrooms, workplaces, small businesses, and local economies. Leaders should strengthen the services that keep people stable, not weaken them when demand is rising.”

The Economy Is the Story — And Latinos Are Not Being Heard

Only 15% of Latino voters in Texas say they live comfortably. Another 82% are either just meeting expenses, having trouble meeting expenses, or meeting expenses with only a little left over — stretched by the cost of food, gas, housing, health care and basic necessities that keep climbing while wages stay flat and Washington stays distracted or takes actions that make matters worse.

When asked for their top priorities on what elected officials must address, pocketbook concerns dominate:

  • Sixty-two percent (62%) cite the cost of living as their top priority, particularly the cost of basic living expenses, food and gas.
  • Forty-percent (40%) want action on wages and the economy, particularly higher wages and job creation.
  • Thirty-five percent (35%) cite soaring health care costs, from increased premiums to access to medication.
  • Twenty-one percent (21%) want action on housing, with utility, insurance, maintenance and repair costs ranking as a leading housing concern.

These are not abstract policy preferences. These are kitchen table breaking points, and Latino voters are delivering a direct verdict:

  • Sixty-nine percent (69%) say the country is headed in the wrong direction.
  • Sixty-seven percent (67%) say President Trump and congressional Republicans are simply not focused on fixing the economy.
  • Fifty-one percent (51%) expect President Trump’s economic policies will leave them even worse off over the next 12 months.
  • Eighty-four percent (84%) express deep concern that Congress is failing to fulfill its checks-and-balances role and is ceding too much authority to the executive branch.

President Trump Is Eroding his Latino Support, But Democrats Have Work to Do

The poll delivers a stark warning for the White House. Sixty-seven percent (67%) of Latino voters in Texas disapprove of President Trump’s job performance — almost the same in Texas battleground congressional districts at 66%.

Twenty percent (20%) of Latino voters in Texas who voted for President Trump in 2024 say that if they could do it over again, they would not vote for him — a cautionary note for his party’s candidates heading into November. This compares to 6% of former Vice President Harris voters who say they would not vote for her again.

The drivers of that erosion are telling: the cost of living and inflation (46%), immigration enforcement in American cities (36%), job and wages (25%) and the war in Iran (24%) top the list. Latino voters are disappointed, and they are making the connection between this administration’s policies and the economic pain they feel every single day.

At the same time, there are also warnings for Democrats, who in the generic ballot are ahead of Republicans (54% to 28%, 18% undecided) but need high Latino support and turnout margins to succeed. The state-specific matchups make the same point. In the Senate race, Texas state Rep. James Talarico leads Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton 51% to 24%, with roughly 1 in 4 voters undecided or saying they do not know enough to say. In the gubernatorial matchup, Texas state Rep. Gina Hinojosa leads Gov. Greg Abbott 53% to 26%, with 21% either undecided or unsure. 

Notably, Latino voters are currently more motivated to vote in support of their community than in support of Democratic candidates, compared with Latino Republican voters who are more motivated to vote to support their candidates. 

These figures should send a clear signal to every Texas candidate about the need for meaningful engagement and response to this expanding group of voters, 39% of whom have joined the electorate in just the last four years.

Constitutional Alarm Bells Paving the Way to November 

The economic crisis is not the only thing shaping Latino voter sentiment:

  • Fifty-seven percent (57%) say civil rights and liberties have become less secure under the current administration.
  • Fifty percent (50%) are not confident the government will respect their basic constitutional rights.
  • Eighty-one percent (81%) think the president should be required to get congressional approval before taking military action against another country.
  • Eighty-four percent (84%) say Congress is failing its constitutional duty by ceding too much authority to the executive branch.

Immigration: Nuance the Narrative Misses

The poll also delivers an important correction to the online immigration conversation. Immigration remains among the top five priorities for Hispanic voters in Texas, and the community’s views are far more nuanced than the loudest voices online suggest.

Hispanics want to see a fair and orderly immigration system. That is not the same as support for mass deportations. In fact, the overwhelming majority of Latino voters in Texas (83%) support legalization for long-residing undocumented immigrants, and support is still 80% even when the program is described as “amnesty.” And 76% oppose providing additional funding for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) without guardrails.

These immigration actions have broader implications — 45% say they or people in their communities fear immigration authorities will harass or arrest them even if they are U.S. citizens or legal residents, and 28% say children are missing school because parents are afraid of being arrested during drop-off and pick-up. These actions have real, measurable economic consequences: 32% report that employers have lost workers, and 32% say these actions are hurting the local economy.

This is a crisis unfolding in American communities, schools and workplaces right now.

For More Information on the Bipartisan Poll of Hispanic Voters: Road to the 2026:

  • Click HERE to watch a replay of today’s national webinar.
  • Click HERE to see a slide presentation of the poll’s toplines.
  • Click HERE to view demographic crosstabs.
  • For interactive national and state poll results, see Hispanic Electorate Data Hub.

About the UnidosUS Bipartisan Poll of Hispanic Voters: The Road to 2026 Midterms:

Bipartisan Pollster team: BSP Research and Shaw & Co. Research

  • Total N = 3,000 registered Latino voters, margin of error of +/- 1.8
  • Texas N = 500 registered Latino voters, margin of error of +/- ±4.4
  • Texas battleground congressional districts N = 200 respondents from TX-15, TX-23, TX-28, TX-34, and TX-35, margin of error of +/- see note
  • Field dates: April 27 – May 14, 2026
  • Survey available in English and Spanish according to respondent preference
  • Mixed-mode data collection strategy: live telephone interviews, text invitations, and verified online panels matched to voter files

The UnidosUS bipartisan survey includes robust state-level oversamples and targets 32 competitive battleground congressional districts across six distinct regional clusters. 

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About UnidosUS

UnidosUS is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that serves as the nation’s largest Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization. Since 1968, we have built a stronger America by creating opportunities for Latinos and breaking down barriers to expand economic and social progress for all. UnidosUS partners with an Affiliate Network of nearly 300 community-based organizations across the United States and Puerto Rico. For more information on UnidosUS, visit www.unidosus.org or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X and Threads.    

About BSP Research

BSP Research is a Latino-owned polling, research, and analytics firm headquartered in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 2021 by Matt Barreto and Gary Segura, who have more than two decades of experience in national polling and research, BSP Research is a leading research and analytic firm with expertise on the political and social views of the American population and beyond. BSP has industry-leading expertise in culturally competent research on communities of color and other forms of disadvantage, and extensive experience in bilingual polling and data gathering from all varieties of communities.

About Dr. Daron R. Shaw

Dr. Shaw is president of Shaw & Company Research and is a professor in the Government Department at the University of Texas at Austin. He teaches American Government, Campaigns & Elections, Public Opinion & Voting Behavior, and Political Parties. Professor Shaw currently serves as one half of the bipartisan polling team for Fox News and is a member of the Fox News Decision Team. He is also associate PI for the 2020 and 2024 American National Election Studies and is co-director of the University of Texas Poll.