Top Hispanic group releases slate of Latina endorsements

The Latino Victory Fund on Friday will announce a slate of endorsements for candidates competing in the 2022 midterms who would be the first Latinas elected in their seats.

The campaign, dubbed “First Latinas,” will cover two House seats, four statewide offices and three seats in state legislatures.

“’First Latinas’ is a one-of-a-kind national program that exclusively supports Latinas breaking barriers in elected office. While Latinas have made significant strides in various fields, they are vastly underrepresented in government — less than 3 percent of the members of Congress and only one in the Senate,” said Latino Victory Fund President and CEO Nathalie Rayes in a statement.

The two House candidates endorsed as part of the campaign are running to be the inaugural holders of newly-created seats in Colorado and Oregon.

Hispanic campaign operatives have been eyeing both seats, which have significant Hispanic populations and span a mix of rural and urban areas near either state’s largest cities.

In Oregon, Latino Victory Fund is supporting State Rep. Andrea Salinas (D), who has also garnered support from some national Democrats.

Salinas is competing against at least two other Hispanic candidates in a field of nine Democrats ahead of the May primary.

In Colorado’s newly-created 6th District, the group is supporting Yadira Caraveo, a pediatrician who served as assistant secretary of the Adams County Democratic Party.

She’s competing against two other Democrats, including Chaz Tedesco, a fellow Hispanic Adams County Democrat.

First Latinas’s statewide office endorsements include two gubernatorial candidates: Rhode Island Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea (D) and Florida State Sen. Annette Taddeo (D). 

Gorbea is facing a tough primary among five Democrats, but the Democratic nominee is all but assured to win the general election.

Taddeo, a perennial contender in Florida politics, faces a tough primary, and Democrats will face an uphill battle challenging GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis in November.

The campaign also endorsed Chicago City Clerk Anna Valencia, who’s picked up a range of top endorsements running for secretary of state of Illinois, and Rochelle Garza, who’s running for Texas attorney general.

Garza led the field convincingly in the March primaries, but will face attorney Joe Jaworski in the May runoff after no candidate cleared 50 percent of the primary vote.

First Latinas is also supporting Alexandra Guio for the Texas House, Michelle Schreiner for the Georgia House and Janet Diaz for the Pennsylvania House.

The campaign will kick off with a budget of $500,000, aiming to support the candidates but also to connect them to Latino Victory’s wider network.

The organization has over the years established deep roots in the national Democratic Party — several Latino Victory alumni are top operatives within President Biden’s political orbit.

“From the voting booth to public office, Latinas have the power to influence elections and to create meaningful, positive change when they serve in office,” said Rayes.

“However, they face numerous barriers, most significantly, a lack of access to resources, which is why this program aims to help fill these gaps to ensure they are running robust campaigns to win,” she added.