PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. — Eliott Rodriguez and Robin Peguero are among the Democrats who want to take back Florida’s 27th Congressional District.
U.S. Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar, a Republican before her congressional campaign, won the seat in 2020 after defeating incumbent Democrat Donna Shalala.
Rodriguez, 70, and Salazar, 64, are both retired television journalists and bilingual Cuban Americans.
“I am the kind of Democrat that’s tired of losing elections, and I believe that I am best situated to win this election,” Rodriguez told This Week In South Florida anchor Glenna Milberg on Sunday.
Campaign finance reports by the district’s candidates show Salazar had received the most donations with more than $1.37 million so far. Peguero, 40, a former federal prosecutor, followed with over $820,000.
“I have been a fighter my whole life. And I was worried about the direction of this country, in particular worried about the direction that our President Trump has taken us,” Peguero, who investigated crimes on Jan. 6, 2021, at the U.S. Capitol, told Milberg during TWISF.
The crowded Democratic primary also includes Lev Parnas, Richard Lamondin, Michael Davey, and Alexander Fornino.
“What everybody is talking about is the cost of living crisis that we have in this community, which in Miami is on steroids,” Rodriguez said.
Peguero, a Harvard grad and author, agreed. The candidates accused Salazar of supporting policies that have contributed to Miami-Dade’s lack of affordability.
“My parents were able to own a home in Hialeah off a mail carrier’s salary and a school teacher’s salary. That is impossible nowadays,” Peguero said. “That’s the American dream I want us to get back toward. We need to increase the supply of affordable housing. The government has a role to play in incentivizing that, and it has a role in giving tax incentives to people who are buying their first home.”
Rodriguez and Peguero also raised concerns about the Trump administration’s policies on immigration, health insurance, and tariffs.
The voter registration deadline is on July 20. The mail-in ballot request deadline is on Aug. 6. The Democratic Party’s primary is on Aug. 18. The general election is on Nov. 3.
Watch Peguero on TWISF
Watch Rodriguez on TWISF
Watch Salazar on TWISF on July 5
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