Harris Appeals to Latino Pride, and Anger at Trump, in Final Push

‘Walter Mendoza, 30, was exasperated with his mother, Ana, as they walked in to Supremo Foods in Allentown, Pa., last week. Their shopping list had to be kept to a minimum, said Mr. Mendoza, angrily pointing the blame at President Biden: “Because your president got these prices this high!” he told his mother. ““Because your president messed up big time,” Ms. Mendoza, a 52-year-old warehouse manager, retorted to her Trump-supporting son. “Inflation came after the pandemic that he screwed up, bro.”Arguments about prices and presidents are taking place across America, but the Mendozas’ dispute comes with extraordinary stakes.

The 2024 campaign has marked an arrival of sorts for the nation’s roughly 36 million eligible Latino voters — a group now so large, geographically dispersed and politically divided that it will be crucial in deciding who wins the White House. After years of Democratic dominance, Donald J. Trump has made steady inroads with these voters. That strength threatens Vice President Kamala Harris’s route to victory, not only through the Southwest battlegrounds, but also in Georgia and Pennsylvania, where even relatively small Latino communities may prove to be critical in a close race. Like many young men he knows, Mr. Mendoza will vote for Mr. Trump on Tuesday. His mother will vote for Ms. Harris. “I don’t understand how I raised this boy — he can’t see reality for what it is,” she said. It was how these fights between them always ended.’ Written by Jennifer Medina.

This story which I pitched and photographed for The New York Times across Allentown, Hazleton, and Reading reports on the influx of Latino immigrants in Pennsylvania over the last decade and their impact on the outcome of the presidential election.

Ana Mendoza, 52, poses for a portrait at Jordan Park in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

Ana Mendoza, 52, poses for a portrait with her son Walter Mendoza, 30, at Jordan Park in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

A house featuring a Puerta Rican Flag on the door is pictured in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

A sign in support for Vice President Kamala Harris is placed in a window above a Puerto Rican flag in Reading, Pennsylvania.

Unidos Action activist Isamac Torres-Figueroa, 51, poses for a portrait in Reading, Pennsylvania.

Normando Santos poses for a portrait at Oaxaca Mexican & Dominican Restaurant in West Hazleton, Pennsylvania.

Political signage is pictured on a road in Hazelton, Pennsylvania, U.S., October 28, 2024.

Political signage is pictured on a road in Hazelton, Pennsylvania.

A sign for Interstate 80 is pictured alongside signage in support of Vice President Kamala Harris on a road in Hazelton, Pennsylvania.

Signage in support of former U.S. President Donald Trump is pictured in the window of the “Latino Americans for Trump” office in Reading in Reading, Pennsylvania.

A volunteer puts her hands on her chest at the Pennsylvania Republican Party Hazelton Headquarters in Hazelton, Pennsylvania..

A statue is pictured outside of Holy Rosary Church in Hazelton, Pennsylvania.

A cross is pictured on top of a tombstone in Hazelton, Pennsylvania.

A sign for U.S. Route 222 is pictured in Reading, Pennsylvania.