The majority of U.S. Hispanics are in favor of the government raising taxes on the rich to reduce the budget deficit, according to the latest data from the ImpreMedia-Latino Decisions Tracking Poll.

“The great majority of Hispanics say that it is better to raise taxes on the rich instead of cutting aid programs to the public,” Gary Segura, a professor of political sciences at Stanford University, told Efe.

“In addition, the ImpreMedia survey reveals that jobs and the economy are the main concerns of Latino registered voters,” he added.

The survey was carried out between July 27-Aug. 9 in the 21 states with the largest concentrations of Hispanic voters in a joint effort by Spanish-language media group ImpreMedia and polling firm Latino Decisions.

The margin of error is plus/minus 4.38 percent.

Nearly half the respondents, 46 percent, said the deficit should be reduced solely by raising taxes on the wealthy.

“In collective terms, Latinos think like this because they are poor and they don’t want to be subjected to additional taxes,” said Segura, who is an advisor to Latino Decisions.

“But the most important thing is that Latinos are liberals who favor (having) the government solve social problems. So, they’re not going to support the government cutting social programs,” he added.

Thirty-seven percent of Hispanics said that to resolve the fiscal deficit they favor a combination of reducing spending plus taxes, while only 7 percent proposed cutting assistance and service programs.

Regarding the issues that most concern Latinos, the survey found that 43 percent feel that those issues are jobs and the economy; 36 percent feel that the top issue is immigration reform and 20 percent said that it is access to education or reform of the educational system.

Pilar Marrero, a political reporter for La Opinion newspaper in Los Angeles, an ImpreMedia publication, told Efe that Hispanics have a political outlook different from the substantial portion of white Americans who usually support more conservative measures, mix religion with politics “and think that someday they will surely be millionaires.”

“Latinos have a more realistic vision because the majority think about getting ahead in this country; but they have the idea that that progress is not something they are going to be handed but rather it is something for which they have to work hard,” she said.

“In addition, Latinos think that in the bad times of economic recession the government is a help, so the conclusion is that the profile of the Latino voter is politically and economically different,” she said. EFE