# Texas official regrets Trump vote after healthcare cuts

> Texas health official regrets voting for Trump after healthcare cuts.
- Title: Texas official regrets Trump vote after healthcare cuts
- Summary: Texas health official regrets voting for Trump after healthcare cuts. Dr. Ivan Melendez, a Texas health official, regrets voting for Trump in 2024 after…
- Keywords: ivan melendez, hidalgo county, texas, trump, healthcare, democrat, republican, senate, unidosus, affordable care act, news, local
- Source: Texastribune — https://feeds.texastribune.org/link/16799/17510738/texas-rio-grande-valley-hispanic-voters-ivan-melendez-hidalgo-trump
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: ivan melendez, hidalgo county, texas, trump, healthcare, democrat, republican, senate, unidosus, affordable care act, news, local
## Trump vote in Hidalgo County
Dr. Ivan Melendez voted for Trump in 2024 as part of a historic swing where Hidalgo County, predominantly Hispanic, went for a Republican presidential nominee for the first time in over 50 years.
## Healthcare role in Rio Grande Valley
Melendez serves as Hidalgo County’s health authority, responsible for enacting health laws in an area with one of the highest uninsured rates in the country.
## Trump’s healthcare promise
Melendez cast his vote in large part because he viewed Trump as a major force in expediting the COVID-19 vaccine in early 2020.
## Regret over healthcare cuts
Melendez regrets voting for Trump because federal cuts to health programs have gutted Valley health departments and made insurance harder to obtain.
## Healthcare access question
Melendez says he’s doing less on healthcare access now than he was before Trump became president.
## Election day dilemma
Melendez had yet to decide whether his disillusionment with Republicans would translate into support for Democrat U.S. Senate nominee James Talarico.
## Political identity
Melendez identifies as independent, undecided, and Hispanic, the state’s largest ethnic bloc, with no party affiliation.
## Latino voter trends
Exit polls showed 55% of Texas Latinos supported Trump in 2024, a massive victory for Republicans in border counties.
## Latino voter concerns
About a quarter of Hispanic voters who picked Trump say they would not vote for him again if they had to do it over.
## Healthcare policy shift
Melendez supports Talarico’s healthcare policies but has fiscal concerns about Attorney General Ken Paxton’s economic plans.
## Family background
Melendez grew up in McAllen with liberal parents and now has progressive adult children, including a gay sibling.
## Trump’s healthcare impact
The Trump administration cut over 760,000 people from the Affordable Care Act and 5 million dropped coverage after premium subsidies expired.
## Health department cuts
Local health departments saw staff reductions of over 30 people after federal cuts, from a staff of about 225.
## Voting for Talarico
Melendez cast his ballot for Democrat James Talarico after realizing healthcare access was more important than cultural issues.
## Healthcare priorities
Melendez believes Talarico would reverse healthcare cuts and expand Medicare for all people, while Paxton’s plan focuses on tax deductions for medical expenses.
## Healthcare regret
Melendez says he’s more aligned with Democrats on healthcare now than he was when he voted for Trump.
## Key takeaway

Dr. Ivan Melendez, a Texas health official, regrets voting for Trump in 2024 after federal healthcare cuts worsened access for Hispanic voters.