Does the way Florida swings this election year hinge on Hispanic voters?

  • Will the Latino vote be a factor in the election?
  • Mi Familia Vota has registered more than 33,000 people
  • Polls show Trump losing among Hispanic voters
  • Full coverage of Florida Decides: How Florida affects the election

With a heavy concentration of Puerto Ricans in Central Florida, many believe the Puerto Rican vote will be a decisive factor this November.

“The Latino vote is going to determine how the rest of Florida goes because of Central Florida,” said Esteban Garces, the state director of Mi Familia Vota. Mi Familia Vota is a nonprofit that helps Hispanics learn more about civic participation.

Puerto Rican and Osceola County resident Samuel Diaz is very much in tune with this year’s election. “Puerto Rico is still a commonwealth of the U.S. So whatever government is in charge here in the U.S. will affect Puerto Rico,” Diaz said.

And the call for Hispanic voters is out there. A number of organizations are on the streets signing people up. This year, Mi Familia Vota has registered more than 33,000 people.

“It's very interesting when we have a captive audience, when we have this discussion about why they are registering to vote. It’s because of what has been said about them,” Garces said. “They feel offended, and if they’re not offended themselves, they know someone who is offended. And it has this tangential effect, I guess, that motivates them to get involved."

But the question still lingers, who will Puerto Ricans vote for this year?

"We have to make that voice present and say, 'Hey, don’t forget about our country there,'" Diaz said.

Multiple polls in Florida show Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is losing among Hispanic voters. ​

According to the Pew Research Center, more Hispanics are registered as Democrats than Republicans in Florida. Osceola County has more than 40,000 registered Democrats as opposed to 10,000 Republicans.

"A hundred percent believe it will come down to Florida, and it will come down to the Latino vote. Donald Trump needs this state to win. He doesn't have a path of victory without it," Garces said.

And although Diaz does not know yet who he will vote for, he knows one thing: “It’s my right to vote, so it doesn’t matter if I like the candidates or if I don’t like the candidates, I am going to do it no matter what,” Diaz said.