Florida’s Latino Voters More Worried About Education Than Immigration

Kentuckians for the Commonwealth

A new poll finds Latino voters are more concerned about education than immigration. The survey looked at five battleground states in the upcoming presidential election, including Florida.

While jobs and the economy are at the top of their list, Latino voters are clearly concerned about improving K-12 education.

A press release from the American Federation for Children says voters in five states “were surveyed by the Democratic-leaning polling firm Beck Research on a host of education and other issues that will prove critical to deciding the 2012 presidential election.  A majority (58 percent) of Latinos surveyed expressed a desire to hear more from both presidential campaigns on how the candidates will improve education.”

Presumed Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney obliged, unveiling his education plan at a Latino Coalition meeting in Washington, D.C. last week.

Respondents are also big fans of private school choice initiatives. They support vouchers, scholarship tax credit programs, education savings accounts, and special needs scholarship programs. The respondents particularly liked the idea of school choice because it helps children from low-income families.

“No voting bloc is more important to this election than Latinos, and it’s clear that education is among the most important issues,” said Julio Fuentes, president and CEO of the Hispanic Council for Reform and Educational Options (HCREO).  “Latino families want their children to have a chance to prosper, and that opportunity best exists through access to a quality education.”

This may also get the attention of presidential hopefuls: 53 percent of the Latino voters polled said education is central to improving the nation’s economy.

The survey was released by the American Federation for Children and the HCREO.