Announcement Comes Ahead of the Year Mark of the Hate-Fueled Shooting in El Paso, in Which a Gunman Targeted Latino Community, Killing 23 People and Wounding Dozens More
New Polling Conducted by Equis Research and Global Strategy Group Shows that Gun Safety Messages Mobilize Latino Voters in Key Battleground States
Everytown Victory Fund Also Unveils First Spanish-Language Ad of 2020, Targeting Latino Voters in Texas
NEW YORK — Today, approaching the year mark of the shooting in El Paso, Texas, Everytown for Gun Safety Action Fund and Everytown for Gun Safety Victory Fund announced a new paid media program to reach Latino voters in battleground states including Texas, Arizona, and Florida, and released a poll conducted by Equis Research and Global Strategy Group that demonstrates the salience of gun safety messaging to Latino voters.
Everytown for Gun Safety Victory Fund also unveiled its first Spanish-language ad of 2020, “No Hemos Olvidado/We Have Not Forgotten” which will focus on Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell’s inaction on gun violence in the year since the El Paso mass shooting. The shooting was targeted at Latino communities and was motivated by the same xenophobic conspiracy theories about immigrants from Mexico and South and Central America that have been echoed by President Donald Trump and other leading Republicans.
WATCH “NO HEMOS OLVIDADO/WE HAVE NOT FORGOTTEN” IN SPANISH HERE, IN ENGLISH HERE.
“The shooting in El Paso was devastating to the Latino community in Texas and across the country,” said Gaby Diaz, volunteer with the Texas chapter of Moms Demand Action. “It’s not enough anymore to pay lip service to common-sense gun laws and then refuse to act. We need more from our elected officials, and we will demand more at the voting booth.”
“The one-year milestone of the mass shooting in El Paso is a tragic reminder of the toll gun violence takes on the Latino community, which knows the pain of both hate crimes and daily gun violence all too well,” said John Feinblatt, head of Everytown. “So it should come as no surprise that Latino voters are fed up with lawmakers who refuse to take action, and are planning to vote for candidates who will make keeping their families safe from gun violence a top priority.”
“Victory for gun sense candidates up and down the ballot is impossible without the support of Latino voters,” said Charlie Kelly, senior political advisor to Everytown. “We’re making it a priority to reach the Latino community this cycle with gun safety messages that we know will resonate.”
New polling conducted by EquisLabs and Global Strategy Group found that Latino voters support gun violence prevention in stronger numbers than they did before the shooting in El Paso. Other key findings include:
- Nearly half of Latino voters say they have become more supportive of stronger gun laws since the shooting in El Paso (47%), calling for stronger gun laws by a 6:1 margin (69% stronger/11% less strong).
- Gun violence prevention policies enjoy broad support in the Latino community across key demographics, including women, independents, gun owners, and those who report lower motivation to vote.
- Over two-thirds (70%) of Latino voters consider a candidate’s position on guns as “very important” to their vote.
- 80% of Latino voters say a candidate’s position on guns is more important than their position on Trump.
- Most Latino voters say they would never vote for a candidate who doesn’t support background checks on all gun sales (66%), putting it on par with racial equality, health care, job creation, and protecting children at the border.
- Opposing background checks is the most disqualifying position a candidate could take in Florida and is second only to promoting racial equality among women nationwide.
Everytown also announced it will spend well over $2 million to reach Latino voters in bilingual ads this year. That spend will focus heavily on digital, as well as other modes of paid communications like radio and TV. Everytown’s paid media campaigns will target Latino voters in Maricopa County in Arizona; San Antonio, Houston, Dallas, and Houston in Texas; and Orlando, Ft. Myers, Tampa, Miami, and West Palm Beach in Florida.
Everytown Victory Fund’s first ad in the program, “No Hemos Olvidado/We Have Not Forgotten” will launch in Texas around the year mark of the shooting in El Paso.