On Friday, the Republican National Committee opened a brand new Hispanic community center in Tuscon, Arizona. Republicans in the state said the new center will signal the party wants to make meaningful connections with Hispanic voters ahead of future elections.
“I think people are looking, now more than ever, for their elected officials and their servant leaders to be accessible and to have a place where you can learn more and talk to like-minded people in the community and talk about issues,” Republican Senate candidate Blake Masters told The Arizona Sun Times.
“I think the Republican Party’s doing great, you know, with initiatives like this, with this center and others to hopefully be permanent fixtures. I don’t want this to be something we pop up around election time and then go away.”
Masters said connections with the Hispanic community are especially important as many Latinos seem to be shifting away from the Democratic Party. In an interview with The Western Journal, he expanded on the issues Republicans could highlight with Hispanic voters.
“You’ve seen the national headlines — Hispanics are breaking away from the Democrat Party, they’re coming over to the Republican Party, and we say, ‘Welcome,’” Masters said.
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“You know, Hispanic families that I talk to, they’re super concerned about everything that’s going on. They’re paying attention. They don’t like Joe Biden’s open border. They know more than anyone that you don’t have a country if you’re not controlling who’s coming in and who’s not allowed to come in.”
Masters said he had heard from Hispanics they are also displeased with inflation, high gas prices and the influx of tens of thousands of new Internal Revenue Service Agents.
Arizona RNC Communications Director Ben Peterson told the Sun Times the community center is an effort to show Hispanic voters their ideas and opinions are important to Republicans.
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“The center is a place to come together, host events, and spark conversations with Hispanic Arizonans,” Peterson said. “This year, candidates like Juan Ciscomani, the Republican nominee for Congress in the 6th district, are leading the charge as the GOP makes significant inroads in the Hispanic community.”
In the past, Democrats have been able to rely on receiving the majority of the Hispanic vote across the country. Yet in more recent elections, support for leftist ideals has been dwindling among members of the community.
According to a 2021 article from leftist outlet Vox, President Joe Biden still won about 61 percent of the overall Hispanic vote in the 2020 presidential election. With that said, former President Donald Trump gained approximately 8 percent of the Hispanic vote from 2016 to 2020.
Since then, Democrats have suffered more setbacks in their attempts to cater to Latinos. A glaring example took place in July when First Lady Jill Biden compared them to “breakfast tacos.”
While Democrats appear to be floundering to maintain their advantage with Hispanic voters, Republicans are not taking the opportunity for granted any longer.
“The Hispanic community is definitely the fastest-growing community in southern Arizona, for sure, and in the state, as well,” Juan Ciscomani told The Western Journal. “So it’s smart for anyone to want the Hispanic business and also the Hispanic engagement in voting in primary elections and in general elections, as well.
“I’m seeing that change dramatically this year, and it’s a combination of the outreach from the Republican Party, but also Hispanic feeling left behind and alone from the far extreme policies of some on the left that they just don’t sign up for.”
Arizona State Rep. Teresa Martinez said Hispanic voters care about the same things as any other demographic.
“Hispanics, like Americans, we care about God, we care about our family, we care about our children’s education, we care about roads, we care about jobs and inflation,” Martinez said.
“And when the Hispanic community starts really listening to people who are going to talk to their message…that’s why Trump did so well. Trump said, ‘This is what I’m going to do. If you agree, great. If you don’t, tell me.’ And you know what? The Hispanic community really responded to that.”
Arizona Republican Party chair Kelli Ward told The Western Journal the outlook for Republicans is positive in regards to November, but she said now is no time to ease off the gas pedal.
“There should be a massive red wave in November of 2022,” Ward said. “That is for certain. But people cannot get complacent. They cannot stay home. They cannot just say, ‘Oh, it’s a done deal. We’re winning, and we’re winning everything.’
“They’ve gotta work. You’ve gotta knock on doors. You’ve gotta make phone calls. You’ve gotta talk to your friends. You’ve gotta talk to people at church, at the grocery store…If we do not, I don’t know how long this country can survive under this kind of Democrat tyranny that we are experiencing right now in everything from the economy to our healthcare to our education system to energy and beyond. We’ve got to save the country, and that means vote Republican.”
