Florida - Tuesday November 1, 2022: A poll conducted by Univision News found that registered Hispanics voters in Florida favor republican candidates over democrats, but support varies among their countries of origin.
The poll results, released Tuesday afternoon, found that Senator Marco Rubio and Governor Ron DeSantis enjoys strong support from Cubans, while Rubio does better among Latino voters of South American origin. His challenger, Val Demings, is supported by more Puerto Rican voters.
The poll found that 42% of Latinos say they will vote for, or are inclined to vote for, Rubio, versus 38% who say they will vote, or are inclined to vote for, Democratic Party candidate Val Demings. The gap widens to eight points among respondents who say they are sure they will vote (47% to 39%).
In the case of DeSantis, 43% of Latinos say they will vote, or are inclined to vote, to keep him in office, versus 39% for Democratic Party challenger and former Governor Charlie Crist. The pattern is very similar among respondents who say they are sure they will vote (46% to 41%). The poll has a margin of error of 3.1%.
Rubio, born in Miami to a family that came from Cuba, has the backing of 54% of the state’s large Cuban-American voting blocs, compared to 26% for his rival. In addition, 55% of the smaller population of registered voters of South American origin in the state say they will support him, against 33% for Demings.
This appears to reflect Rubio’s ability to capitalize on criticism of the Venezuelan regime and other leftist governments in the region, including the newly elected governments of Chile and Colombia.
In the case of DeSantis, an equally large majority of Cuban-Americans say they plan to vote for him (53% vs. 27% for Crist), while he performs less well with voters of South American origin, dropping to 44% versus 43% for Crist (a difference that falls within the margin of error for that segment of the sample).
DeSantis has managed to identify himself nationally with Republican voters, competing with former President Donald Trump for the conservative base of the party, making him a possible contender for the Republican Party's 2024 presidential nomination.