Latino voters in border states told MSNBC they were moving away from the Democratic Party this November, with some saying they identified more with the values of the Republican Party.
On "Jose Diaz-Balart Reports," the journalist spoke with Latinos in Arizona and Texas to highlight the shift heading into the midterm elections. One Texas voter told the former Telemundo anchor that the party "has changed a lot" and she now identifies more with the Republican Party's values.
"We're for God, country, family and hard work," Maria Batres told the MSNBC host.
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Fellow Texas voter Jose Arreola told the network that he also became a Republican because he was most concerned about immigration and "beefing up border security."
"The fact of the matter is, we don't feel safe anymore," the Texan told MSNBC.
A new Quinnipiac poll of Texas voters published last week named the Texas-Mexico border as the most "urgent" issue in Texas, with 36% of Hispanic voters ranking it their top concern.
Diaz-Balart also spoke with an Arizona Democrat who was disaffected by her party because she felt like they hadn't fought hard enough to secure abortion and voting rights. She told MSNBC that she felt taken advantage of by the Democrat Party and expressed doubts about who she'd vote for this November.
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However, MSNBC found that Latinos, like the rest of the electorate, were most concerned about inflation.
"But our [NBC/Telemundo] poll found the top issue for Latinos was cost of living," Diaz-Balart revealed.
That poll also found abortion ranked 7th place in the list of priorities for Latino voters, trailing behind "threats to democracy," "jobs and the economy" and "immigration and the situation at the border."