Understanding what Drives Latino Conservative Ideology

• In Event: Latinxs in the 2020 Presidential Election

Abstract

This study examines what determines Latino conservative ideology. We are interested in understanding what leads Latinos to adopt this ideology, especially given the last four years of the Trump presidency and the large amounts of Latinos who voted for Trump. In order to investigate why Latinos, adopt a conservative ideology, we use the following four datasets: the Latino National Survey (LNS) 2006, the Collaborative Multi-racial Post-election Surveys (CMPS) from 2008, 2012, and 2016. We find that religion and national origin are predictors for conservative ideology among Latinos. Religion, however, is the strongest predictor for conservative ideology among Latinos. Specifically, Christians and born-again are the Latinos to consider themselves conservatives. Understanding Latino ideology is necessary for understanding policy positions and vote choice among this electorate.

Authors

• Yoshira Macias Mejia, Michigan State University

• Ruben Martinez, Michigan State University