Bernie Sanders Leads All Democratic Candidates in Donations from Latino Voters

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A new study of donation patterns among Latino voters by Juan Proaño has revealed a number of interesting trends. “One thing I have not seen is an accounting by either of the major political parties of Latino giving,” Proaño writes, and to rectify that situation, he analyzed almost five million contributions accounting for more than $130 million in donations to Democratic candidates (using a method based on surnames). Here’s what he found:

the best estimate from this surname contributor list is that 713,678 contributions (transactions, not donors) garnered $13.54 million from Latinos from January 1, 2019 through June 30, 2019 to the presidential campaigns. This data shows that Latinos contributed 10.31% of the total contributor dollar amount in the Census 2010 surname list.

Part of Proaño’s mission was to test the concept that Latino citizens don’t donate to political campaigns and are less politically active in general. He accomplished that, showing that the demographic will invest more than $100 million dollars in Democratic candidates by the time the 2020 election is over. And in terms of specific candidates, Bernie Sanders is reaping the rewards:

Bernie Sanders is by far the leader in fundraising from the Latino community (outpacing Joe Biden and Elizabeth Warren). Sanders has taken in 34.9% of the overall Latino fundraising across all campaigns. Given the nature of his grassroots support and small dollar recurring contributions which drive the Bernie Sanders campaign, Sanders will continue to outpace his rivals and even further strengthen his fundraising position among Latinos over the course of the campaign.

Proaño attributes Sanders’ lead to name recognition and community outreach, citing his ability to “appeal to Latinos wherever they live and work.”