Democratic groups using Bloomberg money to launch $6M in Spanish language ads in Florida

The nation’s biggest Democratic super PAC and a Latino group have launched a $6 million Spanish-language ad buy in Florida after former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg pledged $100 million toward the presidential election in the Sunshine State.

Priorities USA Action will spend $4 million on TV advertising and $2 million on radio spots in the battleground state in association with the Latino Victory Fund, according to the Miami Herald. The ads are scheduled to air in the Miami, Tampa and Orlando markets and run Friday through Election Day. Priorities USA spokesperson Josh Schwerin told the Herald the ads will emphasize the coronavirus pandemic’s disproportionate impact on Latinos.

Bloomberg said earlier this month that he would spend $100 million in the state. Polling indicates a tight race between Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and President Trump in Florida and surveys have also shown Biden underperforming Hillary Clinton’s 2016 numbers with the state’s Hispanic voters.

“President Trump has fueled division in our country including through his relentless attacks on the Hispanic community,” Bloomberg said. “I’m supporting Latino Victory Fund and Priorities USA Action to persuade and mobilize as many voters as possible and make sure that Hispanic voices are heard — and their votes counted.”

“Thanks to … Bloomberg’s investment and our partnership with Priorities USA, we will be able to continue our work of bringing the truth to the Hispanic community — who will decide the outcome of this election,” Latino Victory Fund chair Luis Miranda said Wednesday.

The announcement comes after Bloomberg said he would spend $20 million to pay outstanding fees for ex-felons in the state to allow them to vote in November. Attorney General Ashley Moody (R), saying the move was potentially an election law violation, said she was ordering an inquiry into the matter.

“After preliminary reviewing of the limited public information and law, it appears further investigation is warranted,” Moody wrote in a letter to law enforcement Wednesday.