Top Sanders adviser launches Hispanic-focused super PAC

The country’s largest Latino-owned political consulting firm launched Friday a Democratic super PAC to turn out Hispanic voters in battleground states.

The firm, Solidarity Strategies, is owned and run by Chuck Rocha, who implemented the Latino vote strategy that contributed to Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) making inroads with Hispanic voters, who helped power him to victory in the Nevada and California primaries.

Sanders dropped out of the race last week after being unable to sustain his early momentum and losing a string of states to former Vice President Joe Biden.

“Throughout Sen. Bernie Sanders’ presidential race, Solidarity Strategies showed how to build an effective strategy for Latino outreach and mobilization,” said Rocha in a statement.

The super PAC, called “Nuestro PAC,” will focus on mobilizing and turning out voters in Michigan, Wisconsin, Florida, Nevada and Pennsylvania.

Although a majority of U.S. Latinos are concentrated in California and Texas, Rocha and the Sanders campaign proved during the primary the effectiveness of mobilizing smaller Latino populations in battleground states.

In Iowa, for instance, the Sanders campaign’s focus on the relatively small Hispanic population helped boost the progressive Vermonter into a statistical tie with Midwestern moderate Pete Buttigieg.

“We will build upon those successes from the campaign and apply our successful model to federal and state races across the country where Latinos will have an incredible influence on the outcome of the election,” said Rocha.