Hispanics are feeling more discriminated against, and to a large extent hold the Republican Party responsible for what they perceive to be the negative consequences of the immigration debate, according to a survey released today by the Washington, D.C.-based Pew Hispanic Center. More than half of the 2,000 Hispanics surveyed for the report said they saw in increase in discrimination as a result of the policy debate, and 75 percent said the debate will prompt many more Hispanics to vote in November.
Although party affiliation among Latino registered voters has not changed significantly over the past two years, the share of these voters who believe the Republican party has the best position on immigration dropped from 25 to 16 percent in that time. Meanwhile, the Democratic Party -- the traditional party of Hispanic voters -- showed no significant gains among Hispanics and by some measures has lost support.
The survey was conducted by telephone from June 5 to July 3, 2006. The complete survey is available on the Pew Hispanic Center website, http://www.pewhispanic.org. The Pew Hispanic Center is a nonpartisan research organization.
