A majority of Latinos in a new survey say it's important to shift to electric vehicles to minimize climate change damage, but they expressed more interest in buying gas-powered cars over EVs, Russell writes.

Why it matters: Experts say that illustrates a lack of access to electric vehicles, which can be more expensive, as U.S. leaders push toward widespread adoption.

Details: The Axios Latino-Ipsos Poll in partnership with Noticias Telemundo showed that 57% of Latinos said they were interested in a gas-powered car or sedan as their next vehicle. That's the most of any category in the survey.

• About 55% said they would consider a hybrid vehicle that does not need to be plugged in, and 54% said they wanted a gas-powered SUV.
• 41% said they were interested in a plug-in hybrid or electric-only vehicle.

Yes, but: Approximately 60% of Latinos in the survey said it was more important to shift to renewable energy and electric vehicles, compared to 36% who said it's more important to protect the jobs of oil and energy industry workers.

• "People know that shifting to renewable energy and electric vehicles will help reduce the emissions that are warming our planet, causing climate change,” Antonieta Cadiz, deputy executive director for Climate Power En Acción, tells Axios Latino.

The big picture: Latinos represent 18.7% of the U.S. population yet account for 24% of all car sales, according to Autoproyecto, a Spanish-language auto consumer website.

• Hispanics account for only 12.4% of EV owners, according to data from S&P Global Mobility.

What they're saying: While Latinos think EVs are important to fighting climate change, they don't see them as accessible to them yet, Ipsos pollster and senior vice president Chris Jackson tells Axios Latino.

• "Most Latinos don't know other people who have electric vehicles because they've been so expensive and so focused largely on wealthier white communities," says Republican consultant Mike Madrid, based in Sacramento, California.
• "There's an unfamiliarity with them."

Between the lines: Widespread EV adoption hinges on the availability of charging stations, which is already an issue for people who live in communities of color.

• An Axios analysis from earlier in the year found that EV chargers are easier to find in whiter, wealthier neighborhoods nationwide.

Go deeper

Guatemala's young democracy will be further tested during Sunday's elections, which experts say have been plagued by illegal use of government funds and secretive rulings on which candidates qualify to run, Marina writes.

What to know: Guatemalans will also choose 160 members of Congress, 340 mayors and 20 representatives to the Central American Parliament amid what human rights experts say is a democratic backsliding that includes widespread corruption in the country's main institutions.

• Current President Alejandro Giammattei, a conservative, cannot run for re-election.
• Polls show the leading candidates are former Congress member Zury Ríos, the far-right daughter of a past dictator, former first lady Sandra Torres (center) and former diplomat Edmond Mulet (center-right).
• None of the 19 candidates are likely to get more than 50% of the vote needed to avoid a runoff, which is scheduled for Aug. 20.

What they're saying: "Elections are the last thing propping up our democracy… but this process has been rife with irregularities, putting the elections' integrity and legitimacy into question," says Natalia Gámez, a spokesperson for the Misión de Observación Electoral, created in February to monitor the build-up to Sunday's vote.

• Gámez says the collective has flagged at least 30 cases of public government funds being illegally used to pay for campaigns.
• A lack of transparency from electoral courts that have disqualified some candidates while unexpectedly allowing others to get on the ballot has also created uncertainty among voters, says Marielos Fuentes, executive director of the justice and accountability nonprofit Guatemala Visible.
• In May, the then-frontrunner for the presidency, Carlos Pineda, was disqualified for not properly filing all paperwork. His appeals were denied.
• But the same court allowed the candidacy of Zury Ríos, youngest daughter of deceased dictator Efraín Ríos Montt, to continue — despite a rule barring relatives of coup leaders from running for the presidency. Courts had previously blocked Ríos' candidacy.

The big picture: NGOs have increasingly warned of human rights violations against journalists, anti-corruption officials and human rights defenders.

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Half of U.S. Latinos surveyed in our new poll say AI has a bad impact on the lives of average Americans, Marina writes.

The big picture: Despite AI's growing ubiquity, a vast majority of Latinos — 83% — say they have never used generative AI tools such as ChatGPT or Bard. That's about the same proportion as the general U.S. population in an Ipsos poll from April.

By the numbers: 44% of Latinos say AI will fundamentally change U.S. society, compared to 36% of overall respondents in the April survey.

• 45% of polled Latinos say AI will be another piece of technology among many, while 55% of general population respondents said the same.
• 7 out of 10 Latinos and 8 out of 10 respondents in the general population poll say companies should be required to state or include a disclosure when an AI program has been used to create content.

Of note: AI has been shown to perpetuate racial and ethnic biases, since it's built by sifting through and learning from existing material.

• Some people also fear generative AI could replace many jobs, a fear Latinos have expressed in other polls.
• But some jobs in which Latino workers are overrepresented, such as in manufacturing and agriculture, are the least likely to be affected by generative AI in the short term, according to a Goldman Sachs report.

A plurality of Latinos now say "neither" when asked which major political party cares more about them, Russell writes, based of the poll results.

Why it matters: More Latinos continue to favor the Democratic Party, but their allegiance is drifting. Some Latinos signal growing differences on cultural issues and crime — and give Republicans an edge in handling the economy.

The big picture: That hasn't translated to a major realignment among Latinos to the GOP, Ipsos pollster and senior vice president Chris Jackson tells Axios.

• 47% overall (44% of the registered voters in the survey) said they had a favorable opinion of President Biden, about the same as last October.
• 29% of respondents (32% of the registered voters) had a favorable opinion of former President Trump.

State of play: "Latinos are still more Democratic than Republican by significant margins," Jackson said. "But when you're talking about elections that are won by a percentage point, small losses can make a difference.

• "The Democratic coalition is complicated in the best of times. The more pieces are in play, the harder it's going to be for any Democratic candidate to thread the needle."

Keep reading

1. Honduran President Xiomara Castro has ordered military police to take control of 21 of the country's prisons after 46 people died in a riot at an overcrowded women's penitentiary near the Honduran capital on Tuesday.

2. Montevideo, Uruguay's capital, is now under a state of emergency due to the worst drought in decades.

Today we are celebrating Jacky Usyk, who recently launched a daily newsletter (we like newsletters around here) focused on what's happening on the U.S. House and Senate floors.

• Floor the People already has paid subscribers.
• Jacky was previously executive director of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and worked for Democratic Leader U.S. Sen. Patty Murray (Wash.)

Congrats, Jacky!