"We are the party of freedom and opportunity." That's the message the RNC hopes to send not just during Hispanic Heritage Month, but in the months and election cycles ahead by highlighting the real-world impact of Republican policies with the personal stories of its diverse leadership. After picking up significant support from Hispanic Americans in 2020 that allowed GOP candidates in down ballot races to flip offices held by Democrats, the RNC is looking to replicate those wins in the midterms next year.
As Townhall has covered previously, the RNC has been leaning into sharing more personal stories from within its ranks that rebuff the long-used Democrat talking point that the GOP is of and for old white men, a narrative that 2020 GOP victories also undermined. The conversations contained in the RNC's "Free of Fear" mini series have sought to further debunk that idea and double down on the national party's pledge to do a better job of reaching minority communities where they are with stories and people who share their values.
In the third and final installment of "Free of Fear" — previewed exclusively by Townhall — RNC leaders talk about what their diversity means in the Republican Party and what they want Hispanic Americans to know about the GOP and its commitment to school choice, public safety, economic freedom, and other items that matter to Americans regardless of their identity.
"We are a diverse group at the RNC and it's something that, you know, the chairman is proud of and that I am very proud of," says RNC Communications Director Danielle Alvarez. "I am the first female Hispanic communications director of the Republican Party, and I'm born and raised in Miami, Florida, to Cuban parents," she says. "So when we looked at how we built our team, we knew we wanted top talent. That top talent also meant diversity so that we could better represent voters across the country that identify with the Republican Party and with our message of freedom and opportunity."
Republicans and conservatives, historically, have shied away from the Left's obsession with identity politics that's often used by Democrats to divide people along class, race, religion, gender, and a million other lines in a matrix of oppression used to justify larger government. And at times when Republicans have tried to message better to minorities, the result has come off as insincere or temporary. But the RNC's "Free of Fear" series puts a different spin on leaning into identities, one that puts names and faces to GOP talking points about freedom versus socialism from those whose lives were shaped by that ideological conflict.
The RNC's Texas Communications Director Macarena Martinez notes she's witnessed Republicans "doing a better job in making sure that Hispanics know that we are the party of Hispanics. We have shared values, a shared ideology," she explains. "I think more than ever we saw that in these past elections that Hispanics are drifting to the GOP for that reason."
Drifting they are. "In 2020 Republicans netted over 15 seats, and all those seats were won by a woman, a minority, or a veteran — we're representing Hispanics and all minorities," points out Nicole Morales, the RNC's deputy national press secretary. "I think we're going to do even better in 2022, and I think that we are able to convey all of our stories that a lot of people will identify with, whether they're Hispanic or whether they're different races or different ethnicities.”
"It's an extremely exciting position to be in because we get to talk about how it is to be Hispanic, not only Republican," notes Morales of her role at the RNC as the party gears up for 2022. "I think that's something that's very special to all of us and a huge part of each of our identities, and I think we're able to convey all of our stories that a lot of people will identify with."
Jaime Florez, the RNC Hispanic Communications Director agrees. “I think that Hispanics can make a big difference in the next election cycle. And that's what we're here for. We need to make sure that they understand our task, what we're looking for, and how important this will be for our country to win the elections in 2022 and 2024," he explains.
Watch "Free of Fear" Part III below: