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Fox News Latino: the Cuban Conundrum

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    Rick Sanchez weighs in on impact of the outlier Cuban vote in battleground states

  • Duration 5:16
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I'm -- so -- we're talking about the key but conundrum.

You mean the people cannot.

Paint all -- Cuban voters with the same brush.

Which is creating some and some -- some in some.

Nerve -- situation -- for President Obama as well as governor Romney -- in Florida that all important state.

On some Cubans are are are conservative some are not take it away Rick.

Well you know.

Good to be with you you and I've been in this business long enough that you could just basically goes with a top but it will probably be able to.

Discuss it but.

This topic about this Cuban conundrum as you just mentioned is important because.

It may be seen by some around the country -- and out liar but it's about -- in a battleground state and that's what makes it important here is what it is.

Florida International University has just done a whole.

What this poll shows is the likelihood that Hispanic or Latino voters in the state of Florida will vote for -- Barack Obama.

Or -- Mitt Romney and here's what it shows right now Barack Obama is clinging.

Among Latinos in Florida to a 51.

To 47%.

Margin.

Why is that so interest in why is that so surprising well because of -- compared to most other states around the United States you'd find that it's very very different.

And then you ask yourself -- why is that why is it that in Florida.

President Obama is all but tied with Mitt Romney whereas if you did this same poll anywhere else in the country you'd find that.

President Obama would be winning by a larger margin probably something like seventy to thirty.

Out west in places like New Mexico and Colorado and certainly California here's why.

The Cuban vote.

Cuban Americans have continued to vote Republican and it appears that they're gonna do so in this election as well in fact let's look now at this extrapolation.

Let's go ahead and take the Cuban vote out of the equation.

And just look at how.

Latinos would vote in the state of Florida if you separated out the Cubans here's what -- find.

Likely Florida Hispanic voters they would be 65.

To thirty -- In favor of President Obama so once again what it appears that we're seeing in this election and one of the main reasons why it's looking like.

The president is either going to be tied or will lose barely the state of Florida the Mitt Romney.

Is because of that Cuban boat that resides mostly -- mostly in.

South Florida as opposed to the -- -- court or in Central Florida and a different kind of demographic.

In the panhandle.

And Rick we we certainly don't want to paint -- group of people with a broad brush -- but I do have to ask because you've broken down the demographics.

Okay you in a general sense answer why is it -- that sector that human population is so conservative.

When I first started reporting in South Florida in fact when I first you know cut my teeth as a reporter one of the very first things that I did.

Was go to lies do you now that this has restaurant on southwest eight street.

And there was a man there are named Ronald Reagan who would come to South Florida.

He embraced.

This community like perhaps no other politician has ever embraced.

A community at least not one of national import.

And since then the Cuban community has been beholden to the Republican party of course there have been events as well go back to Grenada when the Cuban.

Castro Cubans tried to build an airstrip in Grenada and the Reagan administration went in there and essentially took them out.

There have been many events over the years historically that had somehow garnered the support of Cuban Americans toward the Republican Party.

They're highly political they are highly motivated to vote.

Perhaps more so than just about any other demographic most political scientists.

We'll tell you and they they've remained that way.

So on most issues and remember the Cubans don't vote in terms of immigration they -- in terms of foreign policy.

They vote in terms of what time president's gonna say or do to Fidel Castro.

So that's very very important as well there -- one interest staying.

But though there is one interesting part of this study -- I was looking at it it shows that.

The only area where President Obama does very well even among Cubans as when they're asked who's really looking out for Latinos.

And -- you start to see just a little bit of that immigration debate come into play because the numbers there are 51 to 43.

As opposed to.

53 to 47 or 51 to 49 when they ask him about foreign policy -- economy and that's where you start to see that perhaps.

If Mitt Romney had done just a little bit more.

When it comes to immigration.

And maybe not use that kind of language and some have called toxic.

There's a real good possibility that he would stretch those numbers not just here in Florida but around the country well well and that could've made a difference in how this is gonna end up.

Will we will be watching closely -- to see how this all ends up perhaps we'll have an answer Tuesday.

Who knows if we do I told -- why don't want to put that out there read you know the possibility that's a -- -- -- -- and says contributor Fox News Latino be -- think flat for breaking it down for a lot of good.

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