Leading Latino Organization That Historically Refused to Endorse Candidates Backs Mucarsel-Powell in Florida Senate Race

Democratic Senate candidate Debbie Mucarsel-Powell has lost some ground to Republican Senator Rick Scott in their Florida race, as the latest polls show the incumbent has a lead in the mid-single digits, a better performance than previous surveys.

Nevertheless, the Democrat is making her final push with less than two weeks to go before election day. And she just got a new endorsement from the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), the country's oldest Latino civil rights organization and a group that until 2024 had refused to endorse candidates.

According to the most recent data on Florida's demographics from the U.S. Census Bureau, almost 30% of Floridians are Latino – that's roughly 6,104,896 people, based on the agency's July 2023 population estimate for Florida.

The support now makes Mucarsel-Powell the first woman congressional candidate to receive such backing. The endorsement follows LULAC's support earlier this week for Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), running for an open Senate seat in Arizona against Republican Kari Lake.

LULAC's decision to endorse candidates, a shift from its prior nonpartisan stance, reflects what the organization's National President Domingo Garcia described to The Hill as "a critical time" for Latino communities:

"She is the first woman the LULAC Adelante PAC is endorsing for Congress because she understands and champions all of Florida's residents, including Latinos. We know she will be the strongest voice in the U.S. Senate for one of the nation's most populous Latino constituencies and we are proud to stand with her"

Mucarsel-Powell expressed her appreciation for the organization's support, saying it aligns with her commitment to economic and civil rights for Latinos in Florida:

"I'm incredibly honored to have earned the support of LULAC PAC, and together we will fight for the economic wellbeing and civil rights of Latinos across our country. Our Latino communities are the backbone of Florida, and with their support, we will retire Rick Scott in November and build a brighter future for all"

LULAC entered the 2024 election cycle in August with its first-ever endorsement of a presidential ticket, backing Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. The organization has since pledged support to several Democrats, including Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.).

The latest poll shows Mucarsel-Powell trailing Rick Scott by six percentage points, with 47% of the support compared to the incumbent's 53%. Nonpartisan forecaster The Cook Political Report considers the race a "Likely Republican" one, with the Democrat facing a difficult challenge in the remaining days and on election day.