Hispanic Democrats Joined Republicans in Voting for Texas' Constitutional Carry Bill

This could present an interesting opportunity for outreach.

I’m in the habit of noticing trends. It’s a great skill to have if you want to be successful in politics. 

One thing that caught my attention after the passage of HB 1927, Texas’s Constitutional Carry bill, was the vote breakdown. The bill was passed in the State House on April 15, 2021 by a vote of 84-56, with 7 Democrats voting for HB 1927. The bill would later be passed in the Texas Senate on May 5, albeit on strictly partisan lines, and will likely arrive on Governor Greg Abbott’s desk to be signed into law. Constitutional Carry would be a major upgrade for Texas’ current laws and represents a major victory for grassroots right-wingers.

Constitutional Carry is generally viewed as a hyper-partisan issue that rarely gets Democrat support, but in the Texan case, several House Democrats defied partisan expectations by casting their votes for a commonsense measure that allows law-abiding individuals to carry a firearm without begging the government for permission.

Even more interesting was the demographic and regional breakdown of the Democrats who voted for Texas’ Constitutional Carry bill. Five of the seven Democrat state representatives were not only Hispanics but also hailed from South Texas, a region that Trump made surprising gains in during the 2020 elections.

A report by the Texas Tribunenoted that Eddie Morales Jr of Eagle Pass, Richard Pena Raymond of Laredo, Leo Pacheco of San Antonio, Terry Canales of Edinburg, and Ryan Guillen of Rio Grande City were among the five Democrat elected officials who represent districts in southern Texas. Of these reps, four of them (Morales Jr, Pena Raymond, Pacheco, Canales, and Guillen) represent districts close to the southern border. Morales Jr.’s district is in Maverick County, Guillen’s is in Starr County, Canales’ is in Hidalgo County, and Pena’s is in Webb County.

These areas actually drifted to Trump as evidenced by Trump’s historic victory in Zapata County, while also making gains in Starr, Maverick Hidalgo, and Webb counties in the 2020 election. 

These Hispanics are Tejanos, a unique Spanish-speaking community that has been influenced by Mexican and Texan culture over the last few centuries. In fact, many of these Tejanos likely have ancestors who settled this region of Texas well before the US became a nation. Many of these voters are of economically humble stature, in addition to being receptive to strong border security policies, support law enforcement, and firmly believe in the Second Amendment. On immigration, this is particularly salient due to these voters living right along the border, and witnessing firsthand how Mexican drug cartel activity spills over into the US. 

Based on the aforementioned electoral trends and the profile of Tejano voters, the American right would likely find more success doing outreach with these niche segments of the Hispanic voting bloc. These are perhaps low-hanging fruits to tap into.