‘We captured magic’: the telenovelas reaching Latino voters in swing states

Voters attend a Ballots y Beleza event where they receive free beauty services and a sample ballot. Photograph: Poder NC Action

“Una chingona always knows when to use her own voice.”

So begins the first installment of a telenovela geared toward young Latina voters. Chingonas, which means empowered women in Mexican Spanish, are the target audience for the non-profit Poder NC Action – a Latino North Carolina-based voter engagement group. This year, the largest ever cohort of young North Carolina-born Latinos will be eligible to vote in a presidential election.