Economic concerns boost Trump support among Hispanics in Nevada

Henderson, Nevada () – The sounds of demolition and excavation in the hills surrounding Las Vegas are a sign that change is a constant here, with new $5 million homes proof of the vibrant demand for luxury housing.

It’s progress, says veteran Las Vegas real estate agent Zoila Sanchez, as she points out new construction from the backyard of her own home in suburban Henderson. But it’s also a reminder of a major economic and political problem here.

Rents are rising and homes for new owners are in short supply. The wealthy can find what they want – or build it – but working-class families face a housing shortage.

“Prices are extremely high, the highest they have ever been,” Sanchez said in an interview. “And with really high interest rates, affordability is not there for many people.”

Sanchez says a Federal Reserve interest rate cut would help, and she’s counting on one coming soon, not only to help her business and local families, but also her presidential candidate: Kamala Harris.

“She is a very intelligent woman,” Sanchez said of the vice president. “She talks to me. She just says everything I need to hear.”

And that’s coming from a woman who describes herself as a Reagan-style Republican and hopes to one day vote GOP again for president — just not with Donald Trump at the helm.

“I have never liked anything about him,” Sánchez said of the former president. “Nothing. His way of speaking. What he represents… You know, that immigrants are the worst. That we come from mental hospitals and prisons and everything else. Which is not true.”

Trump narrowly lost Nevada in both 2016 and 2020. Sanchez admits he’s hearing more support for him among Latino voters, especially men, this time around.

“I want to understand it,” she said. “And I can’t. I really can’t… I think it’s sexist.”

When we met last December, Sanchez was willing to vote for Joe Biden a second time, mostly because of her antipathy toward Trump. Now, she says she’s excited to vote for Harris. “If we get to elect the first female president, I mean, it gives me chills to witness history,” she said.

Sanchez is confident, insisting that the energy she sees for Harris outweighs the rise of pro-Trump voices among her fellow Hispanics.

“I know that Hispanics have made a difference in many elections, and I can see it right now,” Sanchez said.

Rogelio Regalado and Rafael Cerros Jr. are not so sure.

Close friends Regalado and Cerros took a risk in 2020 – in the midst of a pandemic – and launched a local radio station, Fiesta 98.1. Their small startup is now No. 2 in a competitive Spanish-language market in Las Vegas.

Cerros works in the business sector and says he is currently undecided about running for president.

Regalado is the host of the afternoon drive-time show, from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. on weekdays, and describes himself as leaning toward Harris but eager to see her work harder for the Hispanic vote.

“I think Democrats take the Hispanic vote for granted here in Las Vegas or Nevada,” Cerros said. “We are a third of the population. Last time I checked, we were 23% of the electorate.”

The station has a political programme on weekends, and sometimes the campaign also comes to the fore during the week, when listeners call in to talk about music or compete for prizes. In addition, the station is often represented at local events.

“I see people on social media, Hispanics, sharing that post, ‘I’m not with Ella.’ I’m, like, wow,” Regalado said.
Cerros added: “A lot of people are calling me, or calling us; Latinos, you know, talking about voting for Trump.”

Both said the economy is by far the biggest reason people they know who were staunch Democrats are at least open to supporting Trump.

“That’s 100% true,” Cerros said.

Nevada was crushed during the Covid pandemic because it relies so heavily on tourism. The state had the highest unemployment rate of the pandemic, at one point hovering at 31%, more than double the national average. Now the statistics are clear: Jobs are back, and then some. But the wounds linger, and working families trying to put the stress of the pandemic behind them have faced housing and inflation pressures.

“We have seen record numbers in casinos,” Regalado said. “But some businesses are still struggling.”

Cerros said Fiesta 98.1’s advertisers are mostly Latino-owned small businesses. “A lot of small businesses are struggling,” he said. “They’re still not at 100%, where they were. Especially with inflation.”

Zena Hajji presents a different problem for Harris.

Muslims are only a small portion of Nevada’s population, but every vote and every constituency matters in a congressional district that was decided by 33,596 votes four years ago.

“A lot of Muslims are angry that they are being associated in some way – and I would say unfortunately – with the problems that are happening abroad,” Hajji said in an interview at his home in Henderson.

“I don’t want my tax money to be going to harm people, especially when I work so hard to focus on helping people here,” Hajji said.

The 21-year-old Democrat, a proud daughter of Moroccan immigrants, agrees with Harris on almost every issue. But the Biden administration’s support for Israel as the conflict with Hamas drags on has Hajji considering voting third-party or simply skipping the presidential line on the ballot.

“Why continue to vote for a group of people who promise no more bombs, no more pain, peace in the Middle East?” Hajji said, noting that those promises have not been kept. She said Harris is more explicit than Biden in calling for an end to the killing of Palestinian civilians, but that words are not enough.

“We just need a ceasefire,” he said. “That’s all. We just need it to stop… We’re tired. We’re very, very tired. And we don’t know what to do with our votes right now.”

Leaning toward Harris but looking for more details

Antonio Munoz is a man of contagious optimism. A veteran, retired police officer and now owner of the 911 Taco Bar in El Mercado, a former JC Penny department store that now houses dozens of small Hispanic businesses.

When we met last December, he was undecided on the presidential race and unhappy with the prospect of a Biden-Trump rematch. At that meeting, he bet that neither Trump nor Biden would ultimately be on the ticket. He was half right.
Munoz is now leaning toward Harris: intrigued and excited, but also frustrated that he can’t find more details about her promise to help small businesses like his own.

“I’ve been looking at their website and it reads, but it’s not specific,” Munoz said. “We need to move forward. We need a different plan to get out of the rut with this inflation that has caused serious damage to many businesses… It needs to be more direct.”

A scorching summer was the latest challenge, stifling the catering business, critical to Muñoz’s income.

“We had over 30 days of 110 degrees (43 degrees C),” Munoz said. “So we had a lot of cancellations because people didn’t want to be outside.”

Now he sees competitive elections as a pause button.

“Because people are afraid to go out and spend,” he said. “They don’t know what to expect when a new administration comes in.”

Evidence of Harris’ new energy starts at home for Munoz. He says his wife is excited, and he shares her view that there is inspiration in the vice president’s story.

“She comes from immigrant parents, which to me is amazing that someone like that can become president,” Munoz said. “It’s a shock to people.”

He also has no patience when Trump lashes out at immigrants or berates the country he wants to lead.

“One of the things that hurts me the most is that he speaks badly about the United States,” Munoz said. “The United States is a world leader. We always have been. We are the best. It doesn’t matter who is there. The people make us the best.”

But Munoz said many friends and others he meets at community events are nostalgic for the pre-Covid economy and think Trump is a better choice for their bottom line. Nevada also elected a Republican governor in 2022, and Munoz believes that makes it a more hospitable climate for Trump this year.

“It’s grown,” Munoz said of the former president’s support among Hispanics. “I have friends who were Democrats who have turned the page. They feel like the country is not going in the right direction.”

Harris, however, is more competitive than Biden would have been and Munoz predicts a very tense situation in Nevada.

“It’s a 50-50 coin toss,” he said. “They have to come out here with a direct message and talk to the voters here. I really think it’s 50-50 right now. It’s close.”