Does the GOP's Fate Rest on Florida Hispanics?

Nate Cohn over at The New Republic makes an interesting argument that Florida Republicans need to do well with Hispanics or the Sunshine State will turn from purple to blue. With Florida remaining the ultimate swing state in presidential politics, Cohn argues that if Florida becomes more blue due to Hispanic voters -- the way Nevada and New Mexico have -- there could be major consequences for the national GOP:

Opponents of immigration reform are right about one thing: Hispanics arent enough for Republicans to win back the White House. But that doesnt mean that the GOP can sacrifice Hispanics without big consequences for their chances. Thats already happened in New Mexico and Nevada, where the Hispanic vote has flipped two states from red to blue. The GOPs route to the presidency has survived the loss of those two small states -- theyre worth just 11 electoral votes. But its a whole different story if Florida suffers the same fate as Nevada, as it very well might if Republicans cant improve among Hispanics.

Floridas Hispanic population has exploded over the last decade, growing by 57 percent between 2000 and 2010. As a result, the Hispanic share of eligible voters surged from 12.5 percent to 16.8 percent between 2004 and 2012, while non-Hispanic whites dropped from 72.2 to 65.8 percent. Those new Hispanic voters arent Republican-leaning Cubans, either. Theyre a mix of heavily-Democratic Puerto Ricans who surged to Orlando-Kissimmee and a mix of Hispanics from elsewhere in Central and South America. As a result, Cubans now represent just 28 percent of Floridas voting eligible Hispanics. The new Cuban voters arent as Republican, either: Younger third generation Cubans have little memory of the Cold War and dont associate Democrats with Soviets, like their parents and grandparents.

The entire article can be read here.

H/t Political Wire.