Congressional Hispanic Caucus Vice Chair of Policy and Central Florida Representative Darren Soto joined CHC Chair Nanette Barragán to host a roundtable focused on voting rights issues affecting Hispanic communities ahead of the upcoming presidential election.
The political event hosted by the Florida Democrat included CHC members, Congressional leadership, Biden-Harris administration officials, and community stakeholders.
During the roundtable, attendees spoke about barriers affecting access to the ballot box for Latinos across the country – such as reducing vote-by-mail and early vote options, mis/disinformation, gerrymandering, language barriers, petition drive limitations, and other suppression tactics – and ways Congress and the Executive branch can work in local communities to mitigate issues.
“It is crucial that we address the pressing barriers that hinder Latino communities’ access to the ballot. From making it harder to vote to widespread dissemination of misinformation/disinformation to gerrymandering, language obstacles, and other forms of voter suppression, these challenges disproportionately affect Hispanic voters,” said CHC Vice Chair of Policy Darren Soto. “We must foster collaboration across federal, state, and local levels to protect voting rights. By taking meaningful action, we can empower local communities and ensure that every Latino voice is heard and respected in our democracy.”
In addition to Central Florida Rep. Soto and Chair Barragán, the following members of Congress were present at the roundtable: House Democratic Caucus Leader Hakeem Jeffries, House Democratic Caucus Vice Chair Ted Lieu, CHC Vice Chair of Member Engagement Tony Cárdenas, CHC Vice Chair of Communications Norma Torres, CHC Whip Sylvia Garcia, CHC Freshman Representative Andrea Salinas, Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández, Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García, and Rep. Delia Ramirez.
The roundtable was attended by Biden-Harris administration officials, including: Ben Hovland, Chair, U.S. Election Assistance Commission; Rochelle Garza, Chair, U.S. Commission on Civil Rights; and Ann Lewis, Director of Technology Transformation Services, U.S. General Services Administration.
The roundtable was also attended by the following community stakeholders according to Democratic Congressman Soto:
- Jose Artemio Arreola, Director of Communications at Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights “ICIRR”
- Roberta Braga, Founder and Executive Director at Digital Democracy Institute of the Americas (DDIA)
- Anais Carmona, Director of Congressional Affairs at Microsoft
- Sian I. Du’Prey, Midwest Programs Director at Hispanic Federation
- Valerio Martinelli, Legislative Director at NALEO Educational Fund
- Rebecca Mears, Director for Democracy at Center for American Progress
- Christina Morales, Texas State Representative, House District 145
- Liliana Ranon, Vice President of External Affairs at the National Association of Broadcasters
- Michael Rios, Senior Data Scientist at UCLA Voting Rights Project
- Lourdes M. Rosado, President & General Counsel at LatinoJustice PRLDEF
- Gabriel Sanchez, Senior Fellow/Professor at the University of New Mexico, Brookings Institution
- Andrea Senteno, Regional Counsel at MALDEF
- Dr. Ray Serrano, National Director of Research and Policy at League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC)
- Marcos Vilar, Executive Director at Alianza for Progress
“The Congressional Hispanic Caucus knows that our vote is our voice, and we will protect the rights of all Americans to register and cast their vote – including our Latino communities. Serious barriers like voter suppression, language access issues, and gerrymandering continue to impact Latino voters and threaten to weaken our voices,” said CHC Chair Barragán. “The CHC Voting Rights Roundtable brought together CHC Members, Congressional leadership, and expert stakeholders from across the country to discuss the challenges and collaborate on new policy ideas to protect Latinos’ right to vote. We are committed to the expansion of access to the ballot box, voter education, and the elimination of obstacles to register and vote in order to ensure that every Latino voter can fully participate in our democracy.”
