One of my classmates wrote an interesting article about the Latino vote in Texas. Their assertion was that even though the Latino population was increasing, it would have little effect on the Republican dominance in Texas. I would like to state right off the bat, that I agree. I don't think that Texas will shift democratic any time soon. That being said, I think that they made some valid assertions in their post, but unfortunately, they lack any sort of evidence to back up said assertions. For example, the first assertion they make is that Texas wont swing democratic because it "goes against their theory." But they don't elaborate on their theory, or state what evidence or reasoning they have to back up said theory.
My classmate did bring up a valid point, however, with what they said about Latino voters. A lot of people have estimated that Latinos are going to be a force to reckon with democratically due to their increasing numbers, and they will be the demographic that swings the state. And while I agree that the lack of voter participation gets in the way of democracy in the United States, I don't think that it is localized to any particular demographic in particular. While Latinos do have the lowest voter percentage of any major ethnicity, all groups could stand to do better there.
However; I do agree with them that Latino voters are probably not going to stay Democratic once they become established. When the Republicans realize the value of the Latino vote, and they realign their platform to be more supportive of immigration and naturalization, the two groups will have a lot in common with each other. Both are generally pro-Christianity and pro-life. Both groups also share a certain male dominated, machismo culture with high value placed on land ownership and the right to do as you please on it. That is a significant portion of overlap, and I think it will eventually draw the groups together.
The last part of their post about Julian Castro is a bit premature, in my opinion. Castro is a young guy and a rising star. Yes he is obviously Hispanic but to say he has no chance at ever becoming governor is a bold statement. It is also a statement lacking any sort of supporting evidence. In fact, I think that Castro's reelection may actually help support the opposition of their argument Castro is the fifth Latino mayor of San Antonio. Most of these Latino mayors have been elected recently, showing a distinct trend with San Antonio voters, and their increasing willingness to vote Democrats into office. To me, this is no surprise with the population of San Antonio at over 63% Hispanic. However, with Latino voters in San Antonio demonstrably swinging the vote to elect Democratic officials, this is factual evidence that directly conflicts with my classmate's assertion.
