Mecklenburg Unidos officially launched Friday at Dominican restaurant Punta Cana on South Boulevard, where plates of empanadas, fried salami and fried plantains were served.
The event was aimed at signing up volunteers for Democratic candidates’ campaigns and reaching voters in predominantly Latino areas. The initiative hopes to reach about 50,000 Latinos who are registered to vote in Mecklenburg County.
Local Latino elected officials were in attendance, including CMS School Board Member Liz Monterrey Duvall and County Commissioner Susan Rodriguez McDowell.
“We have a list of Hispanic voters, so we’re going to focus on knocking on doors there,” Rodriguez-McDowell said.
Also in attendance at the event was North Carolina Congressional District 112 Congressman-elect Jordan Lopez.
“It’s important that we put this in place to ensure that the Latino and Hispanic voters in our county know that Democrats support them,” Lopez said.
North Carolina has a close presidential race, with polls showing it remains statistically close. That makes it even more important to reach Latinos, a growing but often underrepresented group of voters.
The Mecklenburg County Republican Party is also trying to get Latinos to vote red. The office says Republicans are focused on policies that resonate with the Latino community.
