Venezuelans in South Florida that were crucial to Donald Trump winning the Sunshine State in the November 2024 presidential election, are now regretting their vote due to the administration’s hardline immigration policies.
Since returning the White House, Trump has ended temporary protected status for Venezuelans and deported Venezuelans to a Salvadoran megaprison after accusing them of being “terrorist” gang members without due process.
AÂ new Florida International University poll suggests those actions taken by Trump are eroding his support among Florida Venezuelans.
The poll found that 50 percent of those who reported voting for Trump in 2024 said they now either regret their decision or have mixed feelings about it.
About 40 percent of all respondents said they plan to support a Democratic, Independent, or non-MAGA candidate in the future.
The FIU poll also found that nearly 80% of respondents thought Trump’s move to end TPS was unjust.
“It was seen as a betrayal,” Eduardo Gamarra, the FIU political scientist who led the poll said. “We’re observing an extraordinarily polarized community—one that’s split between those who are citizens and those who are not, between those who have resolved their immigration status and those who haven’t.”
Trump won almost two-thirds of the vote in the city of Doral, home to Florida’s largest Venezuelan population,in the November election. It was enough to help him win Miami-Dade county which marks the first time a Republican presidential nominee was able to do since George H.W. Bush in 1988.
Now, just 32 percent of Venezuelans in Florida will publicly say they voted for Trump.
Gamarra noted that there is a generational divide among Venezuelans who still support the Trump administration and those who don’t.
“Venezuelans who arrived before 2000 are the most radically Republican,” he said. “But newer arrivals—many of whom are TPS or parole recipients—see the administration’s policies as abandonment.”
Florida Venezuelans view of Trump is also tricking my down ballot and could have a massive impact in the midterms.
Former Florida Senator and current Secretary of State, Marco Rubio has a 60% unfavorable rating.
Likewise, 43% of respondents say Miami-Dade County’s U.S. Representatives, Mario Diaz-Balart, Maria Elvira Salazar and Carlos Gimenez, aren’t doing enough to represent them.
As for the next year’s midterm elections, 41 percent of respondents say they would not back any of those three while just 31% said they would.
