Why Cubans typically vote Republican

Someone asked the question at Babalu: Why do Cubans typically vote Republican?

To me, the reasoning has to do with context.

Amanda, my fiancee, is Jewish. Her family consists of very liberal Democrats. My Cuban family members are all very conservative Republicans.

When Amanda and I first started seeing each other years ago, concerns were brought up on both sides about the potential of conflict resulting from the extreme differences in political thought... until I broke it down to both sides of the family: the choice of our political affiliations stem from our cultural and historical backgrounds. Jews have witnessed and suffered the dangers of extreme right-wing philosophy (fascism), so they lean left. Cubans have witnessed and suffered the dangers of extreme left-wing philosophy (communism), so they lean right.

Kept in this context, it's hard to invalidate either side's arguments and softens disagreements as matters of perspective instead of simply right and wrong.

Another poster at Babalu, PilotAl, had this succint response to the question:

[...] [T]he huge Cuban migration to this country in the first 15 to 20 years after the infamous revolution was for the most part, politically motivated. My parents did not come here for better jobs or to be able to have the luxuries that are unheard of in a third world country. Cuba's standard of living before the revolution was on par with most of the modern world. My parents, and the hundreds of thousands with them, came here to be free. After the revolution, the middle class, along with the rich and powerful were persecuted. The revolution wanted everyone equal; equally poor and desperate.

Therefore, the mass exodus began. And who are the people arriving in Miami? The vast majority of them are, like my parents, middle class, educated, hard working families. Here is where the Cuban immigrant story differs from most other Latin American immigrant stories. The majority of the people arriving in this country from Cuba during that time arrived here looking for freedom and individuality. They did not come to the US looking for free food, shelter and health care. In other words, they were not economic immigrants. They came here looking for the freedom. They fled a system in Cuba that dictated to them where they worked, how much they made, what and how much they could eat and where they could or couldn't live. All the while their children were being brainwashed and indoctrinated in school to believe that only the government can give you life. Not yourself, not your family, only the government.

Now, the democratic party here in the US has always enjoyed the voting support of those who are enrolled in social programs such as the welfare system. And, to keep this large voting block happy, they have historically voted to continue increasing funding and enlarging the welfare rolls of this country in an effort to expand their voter base. [...] Cuban immigrants on the other hand, for the most part were not interested in government hand outs. All they wanted was the freedom to work where they wanted, open their own business[es] if they wanted and live wherever they wanted. History shows that these people were successful in obtaining that goal. [...]

So why do Cuban immigrants tend to be republicans? The answer might be simpler than you think. Cubans that fled the oppressive communist dictatorship have seen first hand the harm that big government, with large social programs can do to its people, the social structure of their families and the economy. It is not to say that the democratic party wants to install the same system in the US (although there are a few that would if they could), but the leftist leanings of the democrats make those who lived under a leftist dictatorship cringe. Have the republicans done great things for Cuba and its people? That is simply not the case. But their core principals are quite similar to that of the Cuban immigrants that arrived in this country. So when you only have two choices in party affiliation and one of them shares a lot of the leftist ideals of your enemy, where do you think you would end up? [...]

Since moving to LA, I've found that my Republican stance (albeit a very moderate, centrist one) on issues confuses people who are used to Hispanics and other minorities to be neatly grouped as Democrats. The core difference is simple: Cubans are political exiles, not immigrants.