Ongoing ICE (Immigrations and Custom Enforcement) raids in Los Angeles, California have resulted in demonstrations and widespread protests, particularly in the Paramount and Compton areas. As law enforcement authorities send in more troops to control the situation, Hispanic communities have expressed betrayal over the Trump administration. They are now regretting their vote for Donald Trump.
In US elections last year, Trump had received a significant number of votes from all sections of the American society cutting across ethnic lines. It was the MAGA campaign that resonated with the youth irrespective of their ethnic backgrounds. In Los Angeles itself with a large number of Hispanic voters, Trump had secured 44,000 more votes than in 2020.
The Hispanic community played a crucial role in flipping some swing states like Arizona and Nevada in favour of Donald Trump. It was in Florida where Cuban-Americans supported the immigration policy of the Republicans and voted for Trump in large numbers. However, now that the Trump Administration is following through on their campaign promises, a lot of people from the Hispanic Community appear to be regretting their decision.
Cuban mother and Republican voter feels “betrayed" by Trump after her husband is deported (in an Inter Miami CF jersey) — leaving her alone to care for paraplegic son and 3-year-old daughter, and struggling to keep her job without husband's primary household income… pic.twitter.com/0Y1PDoDovw
— Because Miami (@BecauseMiami) May 11, 2025
Latino Republicans turn on Donald Trump
The co-Founder of ‘Latinas for Trump’, Florida State Senator Ileana Garcia (R), expressed her deep resentment over the Trump admin’s immigration policies on X. She said, “This is not what we voted for. I have always supported Trump through thick and thin. However, this is unacceptable and inhumane.”
Garcia went on to add, “I understand the importance of deporting criminal aliens, but what we are witnessing are arbitrary measures to hunt down people who are complying with their immigration hearings—in many cases, with credible fear of persecution claims—all driven by a Miller-like desire to satisfy a self-fabricated deportation goal.”
Stephen Miller is the Homeland Security Adviser and the Deputy Chief of Staff in the Trump White House. He has made a reputation for himself over his single-minded dedication towards the deportation of illegal immigrants.
Maria Elvira Salazar, a Republican Congresswoman from Florida’s 27th Congressional District, too expressed her disagreement with Donald Trump’s action on immigration. She said in a statement, “I am fully aware, and heartbroken, about the uncertainty now gripping Florida’s 27th District because of the recent immigration actions of the Administration.”
“Arrests in immigration courts, including people with I-220A and pending asylum cases, the termination of the CHNV program, which has left thousands exposed to deportation, and other similar measures, all jeopardize our duty to due process that every democracy must guarantee,” she added.
Support for the US President has seen a significant decline in recent times. A Reuters/Ipsos poll late in April revealed that Trump’s disapproval rating among Hispanic voters had surged to 61%. Donald Trump had won 46% of the Latino vote in 2024, a 14 point increase from 2020.
The decline in support was fuelled primarily by Trump’s handling of the economy, which was percevied as unsatisfactory by the electorate.
