Looks like Trump’s taco bowl didn’t help him win any new Hispanic friends. A new poll by Florida Atlantic University shows that Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton is beating her Republican rival, Donald Trump, among Hispanics nationally by 48 points. This sizable margin is nearly double the 26 point lead Clinton held in May.
FAU conducted the poll nationally from July 1 through July 31, in English and Spanish with a sample of 500 Hispanics, who were polled both online and by phone. With a margin of error of +/-4.33 percent, 66 percent chose Clinton, 18 percent chose Trump, and 15 percent were undecided.
Clinton leads Trump by 48 points with Hispanics, per new Florida Atlantic University poll: https://t.co/j018x79950 pic.twitter.com/eh0QiLo47n
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) August 3, 2016
“Clinton has taken some major strides to increase her support among Hispanics,” said Monica Escaleras, Ph.D., director of the FAU Business and Economics Polling Initiative in a press release about the poll. “Her efforts to win over many who said they were undecided a couple of months ago are paying off, while Trump has actually seen his support drop by more than 5 percent.”
Clinton is closing in on the level of support President Barack Obama received from Hispanic voters in his 2012 victory over former Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney, added Escaleras. In that race, Obama won Hispanics 71 percent to Romney’s 27 percent.
“Clinton’s support with Hispanics is growing in our polling,” said Kevin Wagner, Ph.D., associate professor of political science at FAU and a research fellow of the Initiative. “That makes it increasingly difficult for Trump in battleground states such as Florida or Colorado where Hispanic voters may be the difference.”
Hispanics overwhelmingly chose Clinton as better than Trump for the economy, 62.5 to 23 percent, and at keeping them safe from terrorism, 56.2 percent to 22.9 percent.
The overall positive trends for Clinton with Hispanics extend to her favorability ratings, which have improved by more than 12 points since May, from 41.6 to 53.8 percent. Her unfavorables decresed from 31 to 25.5 percent during that same period.
Trump’s numbers, on the other hand, are trending downward. His favorable rating among Hispanics dropped four points since May, from 21.8 to 17.8 percent, and his unfavorable rating increased from 60.8 to 67.6 percent.
Trump is even having trouble winning over Hispanic Republicans, who gave him a 47 percent unfavorable rating and a 42 percent favorable rating.
Photo credit: Hillary Clinton via Facebook.
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