Representatives Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL) and Tony Gonzales (R-TX) launched a political action committee (PAC) on Tuesday to support Latino Republican candidates for the first time in legislative elections across the country. the country in the hope of not only increasing the presence of Hispanic Republicans in Congress, but also attracting voters from the Latino community to join the Republican Party.

The Republican PAC named Hispanic Leadership Trust intends to compete with the Democratic organization’s Bold Pac fundraising initiative, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and has the support of top Republican leaders who came forward during a press conference at the launch of the PAC as advocates of ethnic diversity.

Diaz-Balart spoke about the newly formed PAC at a press conference at the Republican National Committee headquarters alongside members of the Republican leadership. According to The Washington Post “He and other party leaders said regaining the majority in the House requires investing in and talking to Hispanic voters about policy and issues — but they declined to reflect on how that effort has often been complicated by the anti-immigrant rhetoric and other messaging by former president Donald Trump and Republicans”.

Leading the initiative, the Congressional Hispanic Conference, chaired by Diaz-Balart and Gonzalez, comprises nine members, a modest number compared to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, on the Democratic side, which has nearly 40 members. During the press conference, no details were mentioned about fundraising goals or which candidates or states the Hispanic Leadership Trust would target.

Republicans saw a significant rise in support for their party and former President Trump during the 2020 election. In the current juncture, the new super PAC is just the latest example of the GOP seeking to consolidate these gains despite most Latino voters in the country still support the Democrats.

“In the midterm elections in November, Republicans need a net gain of only five House seats to regain the majority. The GOP’s ability to dent the Democratic advantage among Latino voters in states like Florida and Texas could be enough to make the difference in competitive races. While immigration is often perceived to be the top issue for Hispanics, the economy, health care and education are most important — areas where Republicans are polling better than Democrats ahead of the election”.

“Elected Republicans say their gains after 2020 are a result of what they consider extreme rhetoric by the left flank of the Democratic Party, particularly liberals like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who label themselves as democratic socialists. Another dynamic is that Democrats have long promised reforms for the Hispanic community — especially on immigration, which does touch much of the population — but have been unable to deliver in the political logjam on Capitol Hill”, according to The Post.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-LA), and GOP Conference chair Elise Stefanik (R-NY) were among those present to show support for the Hispanic Leadership Trust rollout. McCarthy spoke on priority issues for Republicans, including inflation, crime, and immigration and cited evidence that Hispanic Americans are leaving the Democratic Party, such as the 103 Latino candidates who signed up to run in the election in November for the Republican party, as reported by Breitbart.

On the new Republican PAC, McCarthy told Breitbart: “You’ll see the outcome in this next election, not just in Congress but in school boards and city councils and Statehouses. This will continue to grow to make the Republican Party the majority based upon policies that every American wants and desires”.