The Hispanic Federation and Latino Victory Foundation released a poll on Thursday that revealed that, as of the start of October, 64% of Latinos say they've now been contacted by campaigns or get-out-the-vote organizations. The number is especially meaningful considering that as recently as early September, 1 in 2 Latinos had not been contacted by either political party.
The push for the Latino vote has also been glaringly obvious in the efforts put forward by both candidates as of late. Both candidates took part in separate town halls organized by Univision and vice president Harris even launched "Hombre con Harris", an initiative aimed at mobilizing Latino men in the so-called battleground states.
Another strategy that has increasingly gained force during 2024 has been to created ads in Spanish to attract Latino audiences, a plan that has proven to be particularly keen among politicians in places like Florida.
Over the weekend, a report by Bloomberg revealed that the coveted swing state of Nevada, has also been fertile ground for Spanish-speaking ads, as they have surged by a whopping 724% compared to the 2020 elections, with 25% of presidential election ads now airing on Spanish-language outlets, compared to just 10% in the previous election cycle, when president Biden won Nevada over Trump by about 2.4 percentage points.
Arizona, another battleground state, has also seen a smaller yet noticeable rise in said ad with a 38% increase. Back in 2020, Biden won the state by fewer than 11,000 votes.
Latinos make up a substantial portion of the electorate in these states, with one in five voters identifying as Latino. As both Democrats and Republicans compete for this voter base, the emphasis has shifted from immigration to broader economic concerns, such as inflation and the cost of living. When it comes to investments segmented by parties , Democrats have significantly outspent Republicans in advertising in both states, with $41 million committed to campaigns targeting Latino voters.
When it comes to issues in the ads themselves, Democrat Spanish-spoken ads are increasingly shifting beyond immigration to focus on issues such as the cost of living, while Republicans have preferred to focus on border security and inflation. Both issues topped the concerns of Latino voters in Arizona and Nevada in a recent poll by USA Today/Suffolk University.
Beyond ads, campaigns are spending big to turn out Latinos in both states, as Bloomberg reports. CHC Bold PAC, the fundraising arm of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, has spent $1.2 million in Arizona targeting Latinas, its largest-ever investment in the state.
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