Spanish-language media star Cristina Saralegui appears in Obama ads

Popular Spanish-language media mogul Cristina Saralegui is the newest envoy for the Obama campaign’s outreach to Latino voters, appearing in a new set of campaign ads one day after she endorsed the president’s reelection.

Saralegui, whose influential talk show on Univision has had a 21-year run, backed Obama in a pair of Web videos (in English and in Spanish) released by the campaign Monday. It is the first time Saralegui has weighed in on a presidential contest.

“Hispanics could very well decide the next election and I will do everything I can from now until November to ensure that President Obama is reelected; there’s simply too much at stake,” Saralegui said in a statement Monday.

The campaign quickly took the endorsement to the airwaves, releasing ads that feature Saralegui praising Obama’s healthcare law. The commercials are set to run in Nevada, Colorado and Saralegui’s home state of Florida, all of which have substantial Latino populations.

An Obama campaign official described the buy as “significant,” but would not provide details on the cost or duration of the ad buy.

Saralegui’s campaign involvement is a potent follow-up to the Obama administration’s announcement last week that it will stop deporting some younger illegal immigrants, a move that could bolster his support among Latino voters. A survey by polling firm Latino Decisions, released Sunday, showed that 49% of Latino voters were more enthusiastic about Obama in the wake of the policy change, while 14% were less enthusiastic and 34% said the news had no effect at all.

The move appears to be popular with the broader electorate as well. A Bloomberg News National poll released Tuesday found that 64% of likely voters agreed with the new policy, while only 30% of likely voters disagreed (6% said they were unsure).

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melanie.mason@latimes.com