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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 18, 2021

In final days of voting, District Council 37 uses independent expenditure to target Spanish speaking voters

Union spends $65,000 to try to sway Latinx vote for Eric Adams

NEW YORK—This week, District Council 37 purchased ad space in several Spanish-language media outlets in a final push to elect Eric Adams mayor. The independent expenditure, “People for a Better New York,” was last used in the 2013 mayoral race. For months, the union has focused its attention on mobilizing its more than 150,000 members to vote in the upcoming primary. Now, in the final days of the race, the union is expanding its focus and investing $65,000 to encourage Latinx voters to support Eric Adams for mayor.

“We are all in on Eric Adams – the essential workers’ champion,” said Henry Garrido, Executive Director, District Council 37, AFSCME. “He is the best candidate to help New York City not only recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, but build back more equitably with workers at the center. We must do all we can to ensure all New Yorkers realize this truth and rank him first.”

It is estimated that Latinx New Yorkers will make up around 20% of the primary electorate with many still undecided. DC 37, which endorsed Adams in March, is focused on increasing Latinx support.

The ad buy will target Spanish-language outlets, including:

1. El Especialito
2. Impacto Latino
3. La Mega
4. 93.1 FM Amor
5. The Manhattan Times

This new funding follows around $800,000 previously spent to help elect DC 37-endorsed candidates up and down the ballot. The effort focused on getting the vote out among membership, using tactics such as mail campaigns, targeted digital ads, an email campaign and daily phone banks.

In past elections, the union has seen 15% higher voter turnout than the general electorate and 88% of members have traditionally voted for candidates the union has endorsed

A full list of DC 37’s endorsed candidates can be found here.

New York’s primary election is scheduled to take place on June 22.