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Murphy Courts Crucial Hispanic Vote In Senate Race

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Patrick Murphy is hoping his first Spanish-language ad will help level the playing field against Republican Marco Rubio.

Miami-based political consultant David Duckenfield says Hispanic aversion to Donald Trump could cut into Rubio’s 55 percent support with that key voting bloc.  

“Despite the fact that he’s Cuban-American, speaks Spanish, is from Miami, that makes him look vulnerable. And I think that’s something Patrick Murphy sees and if he can chip away at a 55 percent and maybe drop it to 50 or under 50, he’s got a real shot at winning.”

The ad slams Rubio for opposing abortion rights and ties him to Trump. Hispanics make up 17 percent of Florida’s 12 million registered voters.  More Puerto Rican immigrants are moving to Central Florida and tend to be younger and more liberal than staunchly Republican Miami Cubans.

A Miami native, former WFSU reporter Jim Ash is an award-winning journalist with more than 20 years of experience, most of it in print. He has been a member of the Florida Capital Press Corps since 1992.