Trump did surprisingly well in Hispanic-majority counties in South Texas


President Trump is projected to win Texas' 38 electoral votes, and analysts are taking a close look at the southern part of the state, where he performed better than expected in counties with large Hispanic populations.
Journalist Megan K. Stack tweeted that her "biggest surprise of the night" was Trump receiving 47 percent of the vote in Starr County. This is a "rural, poor, and almost entirely Latino" county, which was a "dependable Democratic stronghold." In 2016, Hillary Clinton won Starr County, with 79 percent of the vote compared to Trump's 19 percent.
In Zapata County, where 84 percent of estimated votes have been counted, Trump is winning with 52.5 percent of the vote. Houston Chronicle reporter Zach Despart tweeted that the county, which Clinton won in 2016 by 33 points, is 95 percent Hispanic, and it was "shaping up to be a very poor performance for [Democratic presidential nominee Joe] Biden in heavily Democratic South Texas."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In South Florida, Trump appears to have been buoyed by Cuban American voters, and Sawyer Hackett, a senior adviser to native Texan and former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julián Castro, noted that there's "not a lot of Cubans in South Texas. Latinos aren't monolithic, but these numbers signal a much broader problem for Democrats than national origin."
Farther west in Arizona, Biden is ahead in Maricopa County, where Phoenix is located. The population there is about one-third Hispanic, and The Atlantic's Derek Thompson tweeted that if Biden does win there, it's "an important indicator that A, there is no singular 'Latino vote,' B, we should get some fascinating gender/education/generation/geographical origin breakdowns of the 2020 Latino vote."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
5 educational cartoons about the Harvard pushback
Cartoons Artists take on academic freedom, institutional resistance, and more
By The Week US
-
One-pan black chickpeas with baharat and orange recipe
The Week Recommends This one-pan dish offers bold flavours, low effort and minimum clean up
By The Week UK
-
Merz's coalition deal: a 'betrayal' of Germany?
Talking Point With liberalism, freedom and democracy under threat globally, it's a time for 'giants' – but this is a 'coalition of the timid'
By The Week UK
-
China accuses NSA of Winter Games cyberattacks
speed read China alleges that the U.S. National Security Agency launched cyberattacks during the Asian Winter Games in February
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Russian strike kills dozens in Ukraine
Speed Read The Sumy ballistic missile strike was Russia's deadliest attack on civilians this year
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Inside the Israel-Turkey geopolitical dance across Syria
THE EXPLAINER As Syria struggles in the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, its neighbors are carefully coordinating to avoid potential military confrontations
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
South Korea court removes impeached president
Speed Read The Constitutional Court upheld the impeachment of Yoon Suk Yeol after his declaration of martial law in December
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Myanmar quake deaths rise as survivor search intensifies
speed read The magnitude-7.7 earthquake in central Myanmar has killed a documented 2,000 people so far, and left scores more trapped beneath rubble
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
'Like a sound from hell': Serbia and sonic weapons
The Explainer Half a million people sign petition alleging Serbian police used an illegal 'sound cannon' to disrupt anti-government protests
By Abby Wilson
-
Israel detains director after West Bank settler clash
speed read The director of Oscar-winning documentary 'No Other Land' was arrested and beaten
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Turkey arrests Istanbul mayor, a top Erdogan rival
Speed Read Protests erupted in Turkey after authorities detained Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu
By Peter Weber, The Week US