Hispanics lean strongly Democratic regardless of place of birth, Gallup finds

Hispanics in the U.S. lean strongly Democratic overall, with only moderate differences based on their place of birth, according to a poll released Thursday. 

{mosads}The poll, a part of Gallup’s Minority Rights and Relations survey conducted June 13 through July 5, indicates that 64 percent of Hispanics born in the U.S. to two U.S.-born parents were either Democrats or leaned that way, while just 30 percent leaned toward or identified as Republicans.

In comparison, 57 percent of foreign-born Hispanics fell on the Democratic side, and just 25 percent identified as or leaned Republican. The fall in support for each party meant that foreign-born Hispanics were nearly three times as likely to be true independents, with 16 percent identifying as such compared to 6 percent of native-born Hispanics.

The group friendliest to Republicans was first-generation Hispanics, born in America to at least one foreign-born parent. Thirty-four percent of them were Republicans or leaned that way, while 57 percent generally backed Democrats.

Despite their lower Democratic identification, Hispanic immigrants were far more likely to approve of President Obama than native-born Hispanics, with 79 percent approving of the president; 60 percent of first-generation and 59 percent of second-generation or later Hispanics approve of the president.

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The poll results, if accurate, are unfortunate for Republicans, as they suggest their recent struggles to win Hispanic votes will not be greatly improved simply by ongoing assimilation.

The poll used a sample of 1,000 Hispanics and had a margin of error of plus or minus 6 percentage points.