READING, Pa. – Samuel and David Delacruz, brothers and barbers in this Latino-majority town, said politics has been the talk of the town lately – and they’ve just been emboldened to vote.
The Dominican brothers spoke to NBC News before former President Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt in the state and before he announced his nominations for Ohio Republican Sen. JD Vance and Vice President Kamala. Harris became the de facto Democratic presidential candidate.
“Wow. It was exciting. It was a very unexpected change,” Samuel Delacruz said of the changes in the national political scene. He said Harris “has the direction and that levels the playing field between the two candidates.”
Samuel Delacruz and his brother David are undecided about who they will vote for in the November elections.
population Reading is 67% in Latinand is one of the cities and towns in the so-called “Latin Belt” of the state.
Both parties are focusing on increasing the number of Latino voters in this battleground state.
In 2020, Joe Biden won the state by 80,000 votes; more than 610,000 Latinos were eligible to vote in the state that year. While Biden won Reading by about 46 points in 2020, Trump saw a 15-point increase there compared to 2016.
Last month, Latin Americans for Trump celebrated the opening of a Trump campaign office in Reading, while the Biden and now Harris campaigns told NBC News they have 24 offices in the state.
Jamell Garcia, 18, a student at Brethren’s Berks School of Barbering, will be voting in his first election. According to UnidosUS1 in 5 Latino voters will vote for the first time this year.
She said she’s not sure who she’s voting for yet and feels “kind of nervous” about the prospect of voting for one of the presidential candidates.
Paralegal Milves Teresa said she voted for Biden in 2020 but will vote for Trump this year, citing frustration with the high cost of living and the cost of running a business. Tanya Melendez, who works at the nonprofit, said she would vote for Harris, citing the fact that he came to the area last year and spoke at a local community college.
Restaurant owner Cesar Lopez also recalled Harris’ visit but said he had not decided who he would vote for.
“I think everyone is waiting for the next debate. “Let’s see what happens.”