Washington, D.C. — Today, the Latino Victory Fund will launch the First Latinas program aimed at electing trailblazing Latinas with a kickoff event headlined by Eva Longoria Bastón, Latino Victory Fund co-founder and Cecile Richards, Supermajority co-founder.
The First Latinas program reaffirms Latino Victory’s commitment to increasing Latina representation in government by electing Latinas who are running for seats that have never had a Latina representative or who will achieve a ‘first’ milestone.
“Latinas are transforming the political landscape in races across the country and they’re winning,” said Nathalie Rayes, Latino Victory Fund president & CEO. “First Latinas aims to increase Latina representation and break barriers for future generations of Latinas who will see themselves in these key decision-making positions.”
First Latinas was built upon Latino Victory’s Year of the Latina in 2018 when Latinas made up more than half of the organization’s endorsed candidates and 68 percent of the victories. In the 2020 election cycle, half of Latino Victory- endorsed candidates are Latinas, with a potential for ‘firsts’ in races at the state and federal levels. Some of the First Latina milestones we may see in November are Candace Valenzuela, first Afro-Latina elected to Congress; Christina Hale, first Latina elected to Congress in Indiana; Michelle De La Isla, first Latina elected to Congress in Kansas; and Georgette Gómez, first Latina LGBTQ elected to Congress.
Since the 2016 election, Latinas have been at the center of historic races across the country, including the first U.S. Latina Senator, Catherine Cortez Masto, the first Latinas to represent Texas in Congress, Veronica Escobar and Sylvia Garcia, the first Democratic Latina governor in New Mexico Michelle Lujan-Grisham. In 2018, more than half of Latino Victory Fund’s candidates were Latinas, and the number of Democratic Latinas elected to Congress increased from nine to 12, with five new Latinas elected to Congress.
