Prairie State Wire

Illinois Republican Party Chairman Don Tracy is eyeing Latinos for the future of the GOP ranks.

Tracy identified Latino voters as the future of the party in his weekly memo. 

“First and foremost, I hate when political pundits and politicians talk about ethnic or affinity groups like they are a monolithic alien species that must be 'figured out' as we try to 'speak their language' in their efforts to outreach and draw their support," the chairman wrote. "Republicans, by and large, don’t do identity politics. Like most large groups of individuals, Latinos are a very diverse group of people made up of different nationalities. Latinos are rich, poor and middle class. They own businesses, they want good schools for their children, [and] they serve as police officers and in our armed forces. Some are liberals; many are conservatives. In other words, they’re just like everyone else. They deserve respect and they deserve a government that works for them — as we all do.” 

Tracy is not surprised when Latinos have "buyer’s remorse when it comes to supporting Democrats who increasingly do not share their values" because he believes they are "more religious, more committed to strong working families and entrepreneurial," relative to the general population.

“[W]hat we have seen in recent years is that Latinos are finding out that Democrats no longer want to provide a government that respects them or delivers results for their families and communities," he said. "We have an increasing opportunity to bring Latinos into our big tent Republican Party as we all work together to save America and Illinois from the destruction of our economy and family units at the hands of radical Democrat politicians and policies. They don’t like to have their Christian faith mocked and their taxes hiked as much as the rest of us.”  

Tracy emphasized how GOP is "committed to reaching out to the Latino community — not asking for them to help us — but to let them know we want to be their voice and help ALL Illinoisans, including them.” 

“And I always thought it was such an insult for Democrats to claim that Latinos would never support Trump simply because he was very strong on securing our border," Tracy said. "Latinos want the border secured just like most people do. In fact, some of the strongest support for Republicans from the Latino community in recent elections has come from majority Hispanic counties that line the Rio Grande Valley at Texas’ southern border. They understand the effects of Joe Biden’s open borders better than anyone! November 2022 is such a great opportunity for Republicans in Illinois to potentially win a much larger share of Latino voters. And if we do, we will have massive victories. But more importantly, we will begin to turn Illinois around.” 

Latinos are the fastest-growing segment of the population across the entirety of the United States. Often overlooked in the national discussion, the U.S.’s Latino population comprises over 18% of the nation’s population, according to the Census Bureau. In Illinois, the figure is 17%. 

In fact, Data USA noted that 13.6% of all Illinois homes speak Spanish.

Similarly, former Vice President Mike Pence has launched ad campaigns aimed at Spanish speakers, CBS News reported.