ALLENTOWN, Pa. – In the heart of Allentown lies La Placita, a family-run deli and restaurant that has served authentic Mexican cuisine for nearly three decades. For owner Beti Rosales, 47, the business reflects the broader economic anxieties gripping the community. Rising costs for ingredients like lemons, avocados, and meat have forced price hikes, while customers increasingly cut back on dining out due to financial pressure.
“If you are struggling economically, you have to cut expenses like eating out, and then the business suffers too; it becomes a domino effect,” Rosales said. She expressed frustration with politicians who she feels only appear during election cycles, noting that many in the community have lost faith in the political system after feeling promised much but delivered little.
Rosales’ concerns mirror those identified by Stephanie Valencia, co-founder of Equis Research, a polling firm focused on Latino public opinion. Valencia emphasized that the Latino vote is now a decisive bloc in Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District, a highly competitive midterm race that could determine control of the U.S. House of Representatives.
“How the House is decided is inextricably tied to whether Latinos vote and for whom,” Valencia said. According to her research, one-third of Latino voters do not identify with either major party and instead vote based on their personal economic anxieties.
Allentown itself has undergone a dramatic demographic shift. Mayor Matt Tuerk, the city’s first Hispanic mayor, noted that in 1970, the population was 98.2% white. Today, it is a majority-Latino city, predominantly composed of Puerto Rican and Dominican residents.
Tuerk highlighted a significant political realignment in the area. While every precinct in the city historically voted Democratic, 52 out of 55 switched to Republican support starting in the 2020 elections, with the largest shifts occurring in precincts with high Latino populations. Tuerk attributed this partly to a disconnect between the Biden administration’s messaging about economic success and the daily struggles of residents facing soaring rents and childcare costs.
The race features incumbent Republican Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, who won his seat by a single percentage point in the last election, against Democratic challenger Bob Brooks, a retired firefighter and union leader. Mackenzie has defended his record on immigration, citing collaboration with local law enforcement and arguing that claims of widespread misuse of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) are based on misinformation. He supports reforming ICE when necessary but stated that locally, his office has not encountered the issues described by opponents.
Brooks, however, says fear of ICE is a pervasive theme during his campaign door-knocking. He shared the story of a constituent who wept, revealing she is too afraid to visit her husband’s grave or go to the grocery store due to fears of deportation.
Data from Equis Research indicates that 66% of independent Hispanics and 26% of Republican Hispanics believe Trump’s immigration actions have gone too far. Rosales echoed these sentiments, mentioning that her sister carries her passport at all times in Connecticut. While she supports removing criminal undocumented immigrants, she argued the current system unfairly targets legal workers who have committed no crimes.
George Rivera, chairman of the Lehigh County Republican Committee and the county’s first elected Latino official, dismissed the Democratic messaging as alarmism. He argued that the Hispanic community is being misled into believing that skin color or bilingualism alone leads to deportation, asserting that such cases are rare and resolved.
Rivera also drew parallels between Republicans being associated with Donald Trump and Democrats being linked to the progressive left, specifically referencing New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani. “It’s very simple: in November, the decision is between a Republican or a socialist,” he said.
As the election approaches, both parties recognize that winning the Latino vote in Allentown is essential to their broader national goals. With economics remaining the dominant issue and trust in institutions low, candidates are racing to prove they can address the immediate concerns of a community that has become pivotal to the balance of power in Washington.
It is shocking that fear of ICE still dominates campaign narratives when data shows most deportations target criminals.
The shift from Democratic stronghold to Republican lean is fascinating. Economic anxiety seems to outweigh party loyalty here.