Harris has to recapture the young Latino voters Biden was losing [Video]

SAN ANTONIO — Rebecca Contreras was planning to vote again for President Joe Biden, but the 30-year-old Texan was uncertain he could win. Now with Vice President Kamala Harris as the de facto nominee, she said her confidence has crept back.

“Maybe there’s some hope again, and our votes can matter,” the San Antonio social media marketing specialist, who considers herself progressive, said Monday.

Long seen as reliable Democratic voters, the support of younger Latinos like Contreras was less of a sure bet for Democrats this year than in previous election cycles.

Democrats saw then-President Donald Trump and the Republican Party carve out a larger share of the Hispanic vote in 2020. This year, polls showed a continued decline for Biden, with the two presidential candidates essentially tied among Latinos; the party has also feared losing more Latino supporters to third-party candidates or to voters staying home altogether.

Latinos are younger than Americans overall, and …