Hispanic Group Supported by Koch Brothers Airing Ads for Marco Rubio

While much focus has been placed on the race for the White House, election races for the Senate and House are heating up as November nears.

With only two months remaining before the national election, a conservative nonprofit group that is funded by David and Charles Koch associates will launch ads on television in English as well as Spanish to give a boost to the Senate campaign of Marco Rubio in Florida.

The ad buy of $700,000 is the first for Libre Initiative, an organization that is seeking to convince Florida Hispanics to support conservative candidates.

This is a big shift and is a signal that the group, which is considered very powerful, that has during the past focused mainly on community organizing, has decided to become involved in political warfare.

Like other nonprofits involving the Koch’s, Libre Initiative only has run spots on television asking voters to thank the candidates running, which is a technicality allowing groups to avoid the disclosure of donors’ identities.

All network nonprofits of the Koch’s, unlike the super PACs they support, have to be very careful to maintain their status of tax-exempt to shield the identities of donors.

Certain groups have become reluctant to test the boundaries of what is legal, yet it appears that Libre Initiative is more willing to engage in an avenue of direct politics.

The spots are the group’s first ads on television of the complete 2016 cycle.

Donald Trump has been spurned by the Koch network and instead the network has focused its deep-pocket financial resources with races that are down-ballot such as Rubio’s. The U.S. Senator from Florida is favored just slightly over Rep. Patrick Murphy a Democrat.

The group Libre Initiative will give help to the digital and television spots with a field program focused on Latinos in the Hispanic communities of Florida.

Asked about this tactical shift by the group, a spokesperson for Libre Initiative said that they approach these on the basis of case-by-case.

The presidential race between Donald Trump and his biggest rival Hillary Clinton has taken center stage since the national conventions for the Republicans and Democrats that were held in July.

However, many political pundits believe the course of politics will change if the Democrats are able to take back control of Congress and can win the White House race.