Republican and Democratic House Latinos face off in race to increase their numbers

Latino House Republicans are building out campaign infrastructure to protect their members and grow their numbers, at times directly competing with their Democratic counterparts, who have a huge head start.

Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) is leading efforts to elect more GOP Hispanics to the House through the Hispanic Leadership Trust (HLT), a PAC launched in 2022 to grow the Congressional Hispanic Conference.

The HLT, which has dispensed $1.3 million to House Republicans so far this cycle, is supporting GOP Reps. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (Ore.), Juan Ciscomani (Ariz.), David Valadao (Calif.), John Duarte (Calif.) and Monica De La Cruz (Texas), as well as Gabe Evans, a member of the Colorado state House running against incumbent Rep. Yadira Caraveo (D-Colo.).

“The HLT is a dozen current Hispanic members of Congress, and in many cases, you cannot grow an organization if you’re losing market share, right? So step one is always making sure that the members come back. We’re talking really solid, very productive members,” Gonzales told The Hill.

In some cases, HLT-supported lawmakers and candidates are up against Hispanic Democrats backed by Bold PAC, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) campaign arm.

Bold PAC is a relatively small operation compared to the big leadership PACs, but in the Latino campaign space, it is the 800-pound gorilla.

The group has so far spent nearly $3.4 million in the general election, including $1.2 million to support Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), a former Bold PAC chair, in his bid for the Arizona Senate seat.

The Democratic group has also spent six figures to defend Caraveo and fellow Democratic Reps. Gabe Vasquez (N.M.), Andrea Salinas (Ore.) and Vicente Gonzalez (Texas).

It’s also putting six figures behind Tony Vargas, a Nebraska state legislator running against Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) in a rematch of their close 2022 contest.

“We have seen more Latino candidates on the Republican side. I don’t know that the Republican Party really embraces Latino and Latina candidates, I think sometimes it just happens to be who runs in those seats,” Bold PAC Chair Linda Sánchez (D-Calif.) said.

“But we have front-line incumbents. Gabe Vasquez, Yadira obviously, Andrea Salinas and Vicente Gonzalez. So we’re going to make sure that we are there making investments to make sure that they return.”

The two groups are going head-to-head in the toss-up race between Caraveo and Evans, who held their first debate Tuesday.

The most memorable moments of that debate came as both candidates struggled to meet moderator Kyle Clark’s demands for straight answers to his questions.

Clark, a 9News Denver anchor who has put his stamp on the 2024 election cycle grilling Colorado candidates in debates, pushed Evans on corporal punishment in schools and on former President Trump’s immigration rhetoric, and Caraveo on her move to the center on border security.

Evans and Caraveo, who are both Hispanic, are in a dead heat, according to reporting by the Colorado Sun. Caraveo won election in the newly created 8th District by fewer than 2,000 votes.

She was one of a record-high nine first-term CHC members elected in 2022. That same year, the Hispanic Conference added six new members to the GOP House ranks, setting its own record.

Of that class, only former Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.), who was expelled from the House in December, is not running again.

The growth of GOP Hispanic representation produces mixed feelings among Democrats.

“I think it’s definitely healthy to see more Latino representation, even if it’s in the other party, because at least we have a seat at the table. And as we’ve seen, you know, issues that tend to disproportionately impact Latinos sometimes have champions on the Republican side as well,” Sánchez said.

“We are going to be a quarter of the population in this country soon, and our representation lags far behind. So I think increasing numbers, and people choosing where their ideology lies, is important.”

But Sánchez said Republicans are overplaying their cards by claiming a massive rightward shift among Latino voters.

“What’s interesting in South Texas is we know that the Republicans are making investments down there, and they are trying to promote this narrative that Latinos are leaving the Democratic Party in hordes, and they’re reregistering as Republicans. And I — we haven’t seen evidence that supports that,” she said.

“I have always said the Latino community is not of one ideology or one mindset. There are differences, and they have made a little bit of inroads, but I think overall, those areas are still solid Democratic areas.”

The view from the opposite side of the aisle isn’t that different.

“We need to have choices. And I think for too many, for too long, we haven’t had choices, and we need to have a seat at the table. And what I mean by we, I mean the Hispanic community needs to have a seat at the table. They need to have a voice,” Gonzales said.

And Gonzales also sees flaws in the perception of Hispanics somehow automatically shifting toward the GOP.

“If Republicans are going to win, you have to win in these demographics. We just have to, and it can’t be some blanketed, bland [statement] that, you know, ‘You should be a Republican.’ You know, ‘You really are a Republican, you just don’t know it.’ Like, what does that mean? You tell me, ‘Wait a second here, we’re the party of opportunities.’ And then you give specifics,” he said.