Latino Shift: The Making and Remaking of the U.S. Latino Voter in the Trump Era

On November 5, 2024, the Trump-Vance campaign won the highest share of the Latino vote by a Republican in 20 years. To some, this might be paradoxical. To others, it's the culmination of a Reagan-era prophecy.

Rather than offering a singular explanation for the shift, this talk analyzes how political knowledge about Latino voters is produced, circulated, and mediated to support broader partisan narratives and comment on debates about American Democracy. As such, the talk interrogates the ideological work performed by post-election analyses and political mythologies.

Using a framework focused on the relationship between knowledge production, power and the media, the project situates U.S. Latino political identity as a reoccurring site of contestation and resignification. This talk builds upon previous literature on the construction of Latino voters as a politically monolithic and marketable entity.

Through an analysis of media coverage, election data, and historical analysis, the project interprets the interpreters who shape public understanding of Latinos in the public imaginary. Key themes include ahistorical framings of the Latino vote, ideological transformations within U.S. political parties since 2008, and the role of contemporary media systems in reinforcing stereotypes about Latino voters.

Keynote Speaker:

Arthur D. Soto-Vásquez is an Assistant Professor in the Hank Greenspun School of Journalism and Media Studies at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He has published a wide range of work on Latino politics, Instagram, influencers, Disney, consumer culture, migration, right wing movements online, misinformation, and podcasts. His first book, Mobilizing the Latinx Vote, was published by Routledge in 2020 and he was a co-editor of Migrant World Making, published by Michigan State University Press in 2023.

Event: Voices for Global Change | Latino Shift: The Making and Remaking of the U.S. Latino Voter in the Trump Era

When? Tuesday, April 21, 4:30-6pm

Where? DMC 5.102 (Presentation Room)