Fort Lauderdale — For his November reelection campaign, U.S. Sen. Rick Scott is spending millions to reach Florida's Hispanic voters, who tilt more Republican. Scott's campaign announced Wednesday that it will spend $700,000 per week on English and Spanish radio, digital, TV, and streaming-service advertisements.
In the next weeks, the campaign will run advertising targeting this critical voter segment, which has voted increasingly Republican in recent elections. These advertisements will run in Miami, West Palm Beach, Orlando, and Tampa, Florida cities crucial to his reelection campaign, with Miami having the most Hispanic voters.
The first TV ad broadcast Wednesday did not name Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, a former Miami congresswoman aiming to topple the senator. The Florida Supreme Court approved an abortion-rights ballot issue for November, giving Democrats hope for this election year.
“In Florida, we understand how socialism suffocates the human spirit,” Scott stated in the Wednesday morning ad. “That’s why I oppose Washington’s socialist agenda.”
Republican Scott has accused Democrats of socialism, like other Republicans. This claim has divided Democrats and Hispanic voters who escaped communist regimes in Cuba and Venezuela, who make up a substantial section of Miami-Dade County voters. This typically blue county swung red in the 2014 midterms and is Florida's most populous with over 60% Hispanic votes.
Last month, Scott said he spends a lot of time talking to Hispanic voters and finds that they worry about “same issues that everybody does,” such education, public safety, and jobs. “People who came to this country legally from another country wanted rule of law,” Scott remarked. “They want America’s offer.”
Last August, Mucarsel-Powell declared her campaign and won in 2018. Ecuador-born, she was Congress' first Ecuadorian American and South American-born delegate. Carlos Gimenez, a Republican, defeated her after one term.
Last month, Mucarsel-Powell claimed she appeals to Hispanic voters because her situation is like “so many people that live here in South Florida.” To reach Hispanics, she gives fortnightly Spanish radio interviews for her campaign. In these conversations, she often addresses socialist voters and accuses Scott of spreading “misinformation.”
“I have seen firsthand what it looks like when dictators take over,” Mucarsel-Powell remarked. “Many relate to that. That's why it'll be harder for Trump to understand South Florida's Latinos and our problems.
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