Four Ways Latinos Shaped the 2026 Midterms
The 2026 midterms underscored the growing influence of Latino voters. As more election data become available, researchers will continue testing competing explanations. For now, four findings stand out.
- Latino voters across the country registered the largest shift away from Republicans.
According to voter analysis by The New York Times, Latino voters shifted 29 points toward Democrats between 2024 and 2026, compared with a 15-point shift among voters overall. The shift was even larger among younger Latinos (+43), voters with a high school education (+36), voters with some college (+32), and Latino men (+31). No major demographic group moved further toward Democrats than Latino voters.
- In Texas, both higher turnout and dramatic voting shifts among Latino voters produced historic results.
Texas elected its first Latina governor in history and its first Democratic U.S. senator in more than three decades. In counties where Latinos account for at least 75% of the citizen voting-age population, the total number of votes increased 39.5% compared with 2022, far outpacing the statewide increase of 25.6%. At the same time, heavily Latino border counties produced some of the largest Democratic swings in the state. While Texas moved roughly 25 points toward Democrats statewide compared with the 2024 Senate election, counties such as Starr, Zapata, Maverick, Hidalgo, Webb, and Cameron swung between approximately 34 and 58 points toward Democrats.
- Latino voters helped reshape the political map in Kansas.
Kansas elected a Democratic senator for the first time since 1932. In Seward County, where Latinos make up a majority of eligible voters, the county moved from R+48 in the 2022 Senate race and R+40 in the 2024 presidential election to D+13 in 2026, a swing of more than 50 points since 2024 and more than 60 points since the 2022 midterms.
- Latino representation in Congress is growing beyond the traditional centers of Latino political power.
The incoming 120th Congress is expected to include a record number of Latino members, continuing a long-term trend documented by LPPI.
While much of the attention has focused on newly elected members from California and Texas, two notable newcomers come from states that are less frequently associated with Latino political power. Denise Powell of Nebraska flipped a Republican-held Omaha-area district and will become the first Latina member of Congress from Nebraska. Richard Ojeda of North Carolina became the first Latino elected to represent the state in Congress. His victory comes as North Carolina’s Latino electorate has expanded rapidly in recent years.
These four findings only scratch the surface. As additional election returns, voter files, and survey data become available, researchers will continue to debate what drove these results and what they mean for the future of American politics. Those are the questions at the heart of our event on November 17 in Los Angeles, where some of the country’s leading researchers, analysts, and practitioners will begin unpacking one of the most consequential stories of the 2026 election and the evolving role of Latino political power in American democracy.
[1] LPPI analysis of data from Texas Secretary of State, “Election Information & Turnout Data,” accessed November 6, 2026, available online.
