Early exit polls revealed Tuesday that Vice President Kamala Harris lost support among Latino voters, as men in the demographic favored former President Donald Trump by a 10-point difference.
Trump received 54% of the Latino male vote on Tuesday, while Harris received 44%. Compared to the 2020 election results, the figures have changed drastically, as Latino men supported President Joe Biden over Trump, with 59% voting for Biden and 36% for Trump.
Aside from Latino men, Harris was also not doing as well as Biden did with Latino women, as per the data shown in the exit polls, CBS Austin reported. Although Harris was leading with Latino women, with 25-point, this was still less than Biden's 39-point lead in 2020.
In the last weeks of the presidential campaign, Latino voters gained more attention nationwide when, during Trump's rally at Madison Square Garden on Oct. 27, comedian Tony Hinchcliffe caused controversy by calling Puerto Rico an "island of garbage."
Hinchcliffe had said, "I don't know if you guys know this, but there's literally a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean right now. I think it's called Puerto Rico."
The comedian's act also included rude and racist comments about Latinos, Jews, and Black people -- all-important groups in the election. Hinchcliffe's comment raised questions about Latino voters' support for Trump, with both Republican and Democratic lawmakers criticizing the remark.
Despite this, Texas Mayor Armin Mizani -- who was Puerto Rican -- said a few days later that "millions of Latinos" would still support Trump due to his views on immigration and the economy.
The U.S. took over Puerto Rico from Spain in 1898 after the Spanish-American War. In 1917, the government granted American citizenship to people on the island. After World War II, many Puerto Ricans moved to the mainland to help fill labor shortages.
More Puerto Ricans live on the U.S. mainland than on the island.
Last month, Harris proposed a new plan to make Latino men eligible for a forgivable loan program aimed at small businesses. According to Harris's campaign, the program would provide forgivable loans of up to $20,000 to help Latino men and their families grow small businesses.
The program was originally focused on Black entrepreneurs.
