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New Report From America’s Voice Highlights Power of Minority Vote in Ohio

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As the Republican National Convention continues, a new report from America’s Voice outlines the power of the Latino, African American, and Asian American electorate in the swing state of Ohio. The report follows new nationwide polling of Latino voters, conducted by Latino Decisions and commissioned by America’s Voice, which underscores the fact that Donald Trump is on track for a historically low performance among Latino voters and that the overall Republican brand image among Latinos remains tarnished.  More than 3-of-4 Latino voters (77%) say the Republican Party “doesn’t care too much about Latinos” (41%) or that the GOP is “sometimes hostile towards Latinos” (36%), while just 13% say the Republican Party “truly cares about the Latino community.”

Unfortunately for Republican down-ballot candidates, the Trump Effect is real and will likely hinder their chances, especially in swing states. Conversely, Democrats need to be on the ground and invest in turning out Latino, APIA, and pro-immigrant voters if they want to maximize their share of the electorate.

TomorrowJuly 20th at 4 pm ET at Moncho’s Bar and Grill, Ohio’s Voice – a project of America’s Voice – and Latino Victory Fund will convene a panel discussion moderated by WKYC-Cleveland to discuss the latest Ohio demographic data and the Republican Party’s challenges and opportunities in winning over a majority of voters in today’s America.

Panel participants include Stephen Nuño, Associate Professor at Northern Arizona University and NBC News-Latino contributor; State Representative Dan Ramos; Cuyahoga County Councilman Anthony Hairston; Pili Tobar, Latino Victory Fund; Lynn Tramonte, Director of Ohio’s Voice and Deputy Director of America’s Voice; and Tom Meyer, WKYC-Cleveland. The panel will be followed by an informal meet and greet, open to the press and public.

See below for key takeaways. The entire Ohio report is available here.

If communities of color band together and turn out this election in Ohio, they will be a force to be reckoned with.

African-American voters accounted for Obama’s margin of victory in Ohio in 2012, and, according to the latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal/Marist polls, Donald Trump is polling at 0% with black voters in Ohio.

As a percentage of the electorate, Ohio’s Latino population ranks 42nd among the states. In total numbers, however, Ohio’s Latino eligible voters population,199,000 in 2014, is big enough to decide this swing state. The GOP will need to win approximately 43% of the Latino vote in Ohio to win a majority here in 2016.

Asian Americans, who voted for Obama in similar percentages as Latinos in 2012, will make up another 127,000 eligible Ohio voters in 2016. Though Asian Americans are a small part of the overall electorate, the population is growing much faster than the population of Ohio as a whole.

By 2060, people of color will make up at least 30.9% of eligible voters in Ohio.

Many of these voters have a personal connection to the immigration debate.  Ohio is also seat to a competitive Senate race this cycle.

Senator Portman’s immigration positions, like Trump’s, focus on enforcement. Sen. Portman opposed the 2013 immigration bill, DACA, DAPA, and expanded DACA.

In contrast, Senate candidate and former Governor Ted Strickland supports legislative reform and executive actions.  He attended a DAPA Dinner with “mixed status” families in Lorain, while Senator Portman refused to do so.

Ohio ranks last for support of the health and well-being of undocumented immigrants, but the state has a passionate band of leaders, community members, and organizations working to change that.