A comedian’s bigoted joke at former President Trump‘s Madison Square Garden rally comparing Puerto Rico to “a floating island of garbage” risks alienating a significant voting bloc across crucial swing states in the election’s closing days.
The big picture: Over 5 million people identifying as Puerto Rican live in the United States — including significant populations in highly contested Pennsylvania, Georgia and Wisconsin.
- In the final stretch of the race, both campaigns have attempted to appeal to critical Latino voting blocs in key battleground states, like Arizona, Pennsylvania and Nevada.
- Democrats and some Republicans slammed Hinchcliffe’s disparaging rhetoric, which targeted several minority groups with racist stereotypes.
- Trump adamantly denied knowing comedian Tony Hinchcliffe Tuesday, insisting he had not even seen his viral remarks two days later.
By the numbers: According to 2023 U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey estimates, more than 472,000 people of Puerto Rican descent live in Pennsylvania, one of the most important swing states this election cycle.
- According to Pew data, Latinos make up about 6% of eligible voters in the Keystone State.
- More than 130,000 and 120,000 people who identify as Puerto Rican reside in North Carolina and Georgia, respectively.
State of play: Puerto Ricans make up an important segment of the expanding and critical Latino electorate.
- Per 2020 exit polls, Puerto Rican voters in Florida leaned far more Democratic than Cuban voters in the state’s electorate, with only around a third of Puerto Rican voters in Florida backing Trump.
Case in point: This year, they also make up key voting blocs in tight U.S. House races in both New York and Florida, Axios’ Russell Contreras reports.
- Sunshine State Republicans Sen. Rick Scott, Rep. María Elvira Salazar and Rep. Carlos Gimenez were quick to condemn Hinchcliffe’s jab, as was Rep. Anthony D’Esposito (R-N.Y.), who is Puerto Rican.
- “The only thing that’s ‘garbage’ was a bad comedy set. Stay on message,” wrote D’Esposito, who is facing a tough battle for re-election.
A number of Puerto Rican celebrities — like Ricky Martin, Bad Bunny and Jennifer Lopez — shared the Harris campaign’s new plan for the U.S. territory, centered around fostering economic growth and modernizing its energy grid, in response to Hinchcliffe’s remarks.
- Singer Marc Anthony, who is also of Puerto Rican descent, endorsed Harris Monday, writing on social media, “I remember that when our families lacked clean water and electricity, Trump threw paper towels and called Puerto Rico ‘dirty’ and ‘poor.'”
The other side: But some Republicans, like VP nominee Ohio Sen. JD Vance, did not admonish the comment.
- Vance, like Trump, said he hadn’t “actually seen the joke” but contended, “I think that we have to stop getting so offended at every little thing in the United States of America.”
Go deeper: Trump’s vulgar rally becomes a drag on his campaign
