WASHINGTON, DC – The National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO) Educational Fund released the following statement regarding Latino candidates in state and local races this midterm election year: “Latino candidates continue to make political progress in state and local races across the country.”

State Senate: The number of Latino State Senators increased from 64 to 66 -- 60 Democrats and 6 Republicans.

Several of these candidates successfully ran in districts which do not have Latino majorities, Hawaii, Missouri and Nevada, demonstrating that Latinos are able to run in non-Latino districts and can have broad appeal across all ethnicities and communities.

State House: While the number of Latinos in lower chambers nationwide – 180 – remained unchanged, the net losses of Latino Democrats and an Independent were offset by net gains of Latino Republicans.

Texas experienced the largest gain (5). Of the 180 Latino State Representatives, 147 are Democrats, 33 are Republicans.

Latino candidates in several state and local offices continue to reach new milestones:

In New York, State Assemblyman Adriano Espaillat not only becomes the first Dominican-American in the State Senate, but also the first nationwide.

In Maryland, State Delegate Víctor Ramírez becomes the first Salvadoran-American in the State Senate.

In Texas, Former Dallas Mayor Pro Tem Dr. Elba García becomes the first Latina Commissioner on the Dallas County Commissioners Court.

In Providence, Rhode Island, Dominican-American lawyer Angel Tavares becomes the first Latino mayor to lead the state’s capital city.

“Latinos are proving that they can attract votes from diverse constituencies, and govern across all ethnicities,” said NALEO Educational Fund Executive Director Arturo Vargas. “And these historic milestones demonstrate they are ...