lts are in for 6 Heavily Hispanic Battleground House Races

Three Hispanic House races were won by Republicans Tuesday night. Three such seats were also won by Democrats.

Rev. The Daily Signal was informed by Samuel Rodriguez, president and CEO of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference. He said that Hispanics “not necessarily fully Republican, [but] it is definitely, definitely not longer part of the Democratic train.”

According to the Pew Research Center, Hispanic Americans have been the fastest-growing ethnic group in the country’s electorate since the 2018 midterm elections. This year, there are 34.5 million eligible Latino voters.

Political strategists closely monitored three Texas and three Florida House districts, which are largely Latino, to see how the political tide was shifting among the Hispanic community. Here’s what happened within those districts.

Texas’ 15 and Congressional District

The Republican candidate Monica De La Cruz beat Michelle Vallejo Tuesday, winning 53%, according to The New York Times. Votes are still being counted.

The newly drawn 15 ^th congressional District in Texas, which measures 250 miles, is approximately 80% Hispanic. It was considered a highly complete House race. Redistricting resulted in no incumbent in this race.

I-Vt. Senator Bernie Sanders held a rally together with Vallejo to energize progressive voters in the District.

Sanders stated to the crowd, “The vote right there in this district could decide which party controls U.S. House of Representatives. And I think the choice it is clear.” “The choice is whether or not we give billionaires more tax breaks and cut Social Security and Medicare, Medicaid, and education–or if we stand up for the working classes of this country. Michelle Vallejo is on our side.

At a rally in Robstown, South Texas in October, Donald Trump endorsed De La Cruz. He called her a “real Star” and praised her for being a “real Star”.

Steve Shepard is Politico’s chief election reporter. He says Texas’ 15 ^th Congress District is an example “Republicans’ surge at the Rio Grande Valley.” Vicente Gonzalez, a Democratic Representative, won the district by 21 points in 2018, but this lead has shrunk to 3 points in 2020.

Shepard correctly predicted that Republican De La Cruz would win this seat.

Texas’ 28 ^th Congress District

Republican Cassy Garcia was defeated by Henry Cuellar, Incumbent Democratic Rep. in Texas’ 28 ^th District.

According to The New York Times, Cuellar won 56% of the vote. 94% of votes had been counted on Tuesday night.

A large portion of South Texas, which is approximately 78% Hispanic and borders Mexico, makes up the border.

Tuesday night was Cuellar’s 10 ^th victory in the House seat.

He is considered a moderate Democrat. He opposes abortion and advocates for Second Amendment rights as well as a secure frontier. He narrowly escaped Democratic primary challenges from the Left in 2020 and 2022.

Garcia was previously the deputy state director for Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). Trump appointed Garcia to the White House Hispanic Prosperity Initiative in 2020.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, supported Garcia on Oct. 19. He said that Garcia was the “wife” of a Border Patrol agent and knew firsthand the consequences. Her proven track record in public service will allow her to deliver results for South Texas residents.

Politico correctly predicted that Cuellar would defeat Garcia.

Texas’ 34 ^th Congress District

Republican Rep. Mayra Flores lost against Democrat Rep. Vicente Gonzalez in Texas’ 34^th Congressional District.

The New York Times declared the race for Gonzalez with 95% of the votes counted. Flores had a 9% lead as votes were continued to be counted on Tuesday night.

Flores made history when she won the South Texas congressional seat, which had been held by Democrats for over 100 years, in a special election.

Flores’ victory a few months ago “speaks volumes to Ronald Reagan’s message that “Hispanics Are Republican.” They just don’t know it yet,” Cesar Ybarra, FreedomWorks , said on “The Daily Signal podcast” in June.

Ybarra stated that “Republicans have done a better job explaining the Republican Party platform for Hispanic voters.” “This is due to the horrible job that President Biden has done with the economy, and the congressional Democrats.”

Gonzalez is currently the representative for Texas’ 15 ^thCongressional District. However, Gonzalez decided to run in the 34 ^th District following the creation of the new state political map.

Gonzalez won the 2018 general election with over 60% of the vote.

FiveThirtyEight reported polling data from RMG Research that showed a victory of 4-percentage points for Gonzalez.

Florida’s 9 ^th Congress District

Darren Soto, the incumbent Democratic Representative, defeated Scotty Moore Tuesday to win Florida’s 9 ^th Congressional district.

The New York Times reported Tuesday night that Soto won reelection with 54% vote. 87% of the vote was counted.

It is located in central California and has a population of approximately 40% Hispanics.

Soto was first elected in 2016 to represent Florida’s 9 ^th Congress District. Soto’s Republican opponent was not a politician. Moore wrote on his campaign website that Moore spent 20 years at a Christian nonprofit and decided to get involved with politics because of the “direction, condition, and wonder of our amazing country.”

Soto was correctly predicted to retain the seat. FiveThirtyEight polling showed that Soto defeated Moore by 8 percentage points.

Florida’s 27 ^th Congress District

The Associated Press projected that Republican Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar defeated state Sen. Annette Taddeo, a Democrat challenger, to keep her seat in Florida’s 27 ^th Congressional district.

The district is home to almost 70% Hispanics and is located in the southern part Miami-Dade County.

In 2020, Salazar beat Donna Shalala, the incumbent Democratic Rep. by approximately 3 percentage points.

Tuesday’s victory was decided in less than two hours, with 57% of the vote. The New York Times reported 95% of votes.

Salazar ran on an antisocialism platform. She wrote on her campaign website that the Left wanted to implement socialism in the country. However, she promised to “preserve the freedoms that make this country one of the most extraordinary countries in the history.

Taddeo stated in a recent campaign ad that “This election will decide if we remain beacons of freedom or become a socialist dictatorship.” Salazar was called a “MAGA Republican,” who “supports government control of women’s health care decisions.”

Florida Politics reported that Salazar was leading Taddeo by 6 percent in mid-October. Politico correctly predicted that Salazar would win the district.

Florida’s 28 ^th Congress District

Republican Rep. Carlos Gimenez won reelection Tuesday night against Democratic opponent Robert Asencio.

According to The New York Times, Gimenez won the seat with 64% vote and 95% of votes as of Wednesday morning.

The new district of Florida’s 28 ^th District was created following the 2020 census. The district absorbed most Florida’s 26 ^th districts, currently represented by Gimenez.

Gimenez was elected in 2020 to Florida’s 26 ^th District. He was projected to defeat Asencio (a retired police captain) in Florida’s southernmost district. Gimenez was the mayor of Miami-Dade County before he was elected to Congress.

“Gimenez has a keen understanding of the changing politics in South Florida,” Politico’s Shepard wrote in his analysis. He was the mayor of Miami-Dade County and he endorsed Hillary Clinton in 2016. Then he flipped to support Donald Trump in 2020 when he was going against the incumbent, Democrat Debbie Mucarsel-Powell. It worked: Gimenez won GOP nomination and defeated Mucarsel Powell by 3 points.

FiveThirtyEight poll data showed that Gimenez would defeat Asencio 10 percentage points.

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Results for 6 Heavily Hispanic Battleground House Races was first published on The Daily Signal.