Tag: FL-25

As we wrote back in October, Democrats have been aiming to recruit three solid challengers to dislodge the heavily-entrenched trio of Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart (FL-21 and FL-25, respectively) and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (FL-18).

The first heavy hitter, former Hialeah mayor Raul Martinez, threw his hat into the ring against Lincoln Diaz-Balart yesterday.

Are two more challengers on the way?  Local NBC6 political reporter Nick Bogert reports that the Democrats will field a full slate against the Miami-area incumbents:

Democrats hope to take on all three long-time Cuban-American congressional Republicans, Bogert said.

Miami-Dade County party chair Joe Garcia said he will challenge Mario Diaz-Balart, and businesswoman Annette Taddeo will take on Ileana Ros-Lehtinen.

Democrats may even set up political action committees to pay for advertisements attacking all three Republican incumbents, Bogert said. He said to expect Republicans to spend a lot to defend those seats.

Garcia, chair of the Miami-Dade Democratic Party and former Cuban-American National Foundation executive director, is the real deal, and should be an excellent candidate.

This is the first I’ve heard of Annette Taddeo, but her official biography is impressive.

Get ready for some south Florida barn-burners.

Over the weekend, people have been talking, activists have been working, and momentum has been building. Now it’s time to act.

It all started a few weeks ago. Joe Garcia, who serves as Miami-Dade Democratic Party Chairman and Cuban American National Foundation Executive Director (as well as a host of other activities), was interviewed by The Hill. In the interview, he said he would consider running for Congress in the 25th district, if he was asked to.

So last week I posed the idea, “FL-25: Republicans in Trouble, Should We Draft Joe Garcia?”

Basically, the Republican machine and stronghold in Miami-Dade is falling apart. What were once solidly Republican-leaning traditional Cuban-American districts are now becoming integrated districts with immigrants from around other parts of the US. And the new generation of Cuban-Americans from the districts is not buying the old Republican rallying tactics of anti-Cuba rhetoric. Polls taken in the district have shown health care and Iraq as the major issues. Republican registration is down and once solidly safe local Republican incumbents are facing the challenges of their lives, including from the Florida Netroot’s own Michael Calderin, in the 119th Florida house district. With the current political winds in our favor, we need to take advantage of this situation.

…

So the questions is, should we start asking? Should we draft Joe Garcia into the race?

Word started spreading all around Democratic circles in Miami and Florida, in the media and in the blogs.

From local Florida blog Stuck on the Palmetto:

I’ve liked Joe Garcia ever since I heard him hand Henry Gomez his a** during a debate on one of the babalu Radio Hours. It really was a thing of beauty and revealed Garcia to be articulate and forward thinking, particularly on Cuba foreign policy matters, and not mired in the failed policies of the past 40 some odd years.

[Listen to Joe debate hysterical Cuban-American hardliner Henry Gomez here. Let the broadcast download and advance it to about 19:00 when the conversation begins. The debate ends abruptly when Henry mutes Joe at 54:00.]

Joe has said he would run if he was asked. Let’s ask. Let’s start tossing out relics of the past and start looking forward.

A facebook page was created and already has over 50 members!

James L right here at Swing State Project also covered the election prospects of this run, in “FL-25: A Foe for Mario?”“

I think this could be a fun race, and I don’t think that the GOP is well-situated to appeal to the Cuban community in the long term, where the Iraq War and S-CHIP are as big of a set of concerns as they are everywhere else.  And, let’s face it, the GOP’s Latino outreach hasn’t been exactly spectacular in recent years.

Still more commented at the draft blog, Gloria wrote:

Joe Garcia is exactly what we need for the Democrats to get a voice in South Florida. I am totally behind this effort and I have personally told him to run in the past and am doing so again – Please Joe, run run run and give some other voice a chance to be heard besides one of the Diaz Balart brothers.

…

Even though I live in Lincoln’s district, Mario’s is next door and we have to start somewhere and Joe Garcia – would be great.

And Sandra said:

I will be another HUGE supporter of Joe Garcia. I write Mario Diaz Balart constantly and I am frustrated and sick of him ignoring the needs of his constituents He just repeats the talking points and the lies of the administration. I will be more than happy to volunteer my time if he decides to run.

We desperately need a change.

Meanwhile, a Republican chimed in:

I am a lifelong republican and a conservative yet I am also a Cuban-American who believes that we need new blood and ideas on the debate over Cuba policy.

Go Joe!

And one of the latest comments comes from Bonnie:

As a voter in the 25th, I urge you to run for Congress so that we will finally have a rational voice. You will have my vote and can count on my help as a volunteer.

Then Joe responded!

On Friday, Joe spoke with Nicole Sandler on WINZ radio (Media Player). In the interview, which you can listen to at the link above, Joe said he was considering the decision with his family and would likely make a decision in a couple months. He spoke positively on the Party’s efforts to get challengers running in all three districts currently represented by Republicans. On a side note, he also endorsed the idea of Publicly-Financed Elections in the interview. I think many of us couldn’t agree more.

If this wasn’t enough, in an email sent out by Joe Garcia himself to the Miami-Dade Democratic Party’s mailing list, Joe had this to say:

“While I am still far from making a decision, I do want to say that your kindness and support are very humbling and much appreciated!”

I was extremely thrilled to hear this from Joe. He would make a terrific Congressman. No longer in FL-25 would we have a vote for more war. No longer would we have a vote against SCHIP and children’s health care. No longer would there be a vote against life-saving Stem Cell Research. We could actually send a Congressman to Washington who would vote for allowing negotiation for prescription drugs. We would have a Congressman who would support publicly-financed elections. But most importantly, we would add a progressive voice in Washington, who isn’t afraid to say the truth.

So now the real fun part begins. We need to let Joe know if enters this race that he will have real grassroots support to win the election. As an experienced leader, who has served his community all his life, who has stood up for those in need of help, I know he would be a worthy Congressman. But we need to step up and let Joe know we want him in Congress. Joe said he would consider running if asked. Well true to his word he is considering. Now we need to ask him to run.

The Draft Joe Garcia website/blog has been gradually launched over the weekend. Now it’s about up and running at full speed.

An Act Blue Page has also been set up and the goal is to reach 100 contributors of $5.00 each. The amount has two benefits. It’s small, so it’s not going to break anyone’s piggy bank, but it will also have an impact well beyond its monetary value. It’s about showing Joe the grassroots wants him to run and he will have our support should he enter the race. The goal is actually a bit ambitious, but I think we can reach it. This victory would be particularly sweet for the Florida netroots, which has been growing very rapidly over the last couple of years. So please contribute to get Joe in the race, if you are able.

Why I Ask Joe to Run

The reason why I’m asking for Joe to run is quite simple. Miami and surrounding counties are changing. No longer are these areas the Republican strong-holds that they once were. The 25th district’s constituency simply does not reflect the right-wing and Bush rubber-stamp votes being made by Mario Diaz-Balart. So 2008 offers us the chance to pick up the district and we need someone to run who is going to stand up for basic Democratic Party and progressive principles, like expanding health care coverage, voting to get money out of politics, and ending the war in Iraq. This is our chance to take back this seat, but not only that, send someone to Washington who is going to do the right thing for the people of the district, Florida, and America. Recently in November, Joe led Democrats to record victories in Miami-Dade elections. Now let’s lead him to victory, but first we have to get him in and build a strong grassroots network for the campaign.

Will you ask Joe to run? Will you add your voice to the many already asking Joe to give Mario the political challenge of his life?

Four Things You Can Do Right Now

Contribute $5.00
Sign The Petition
Facebook Page
Draft Website

As SSP readers know, we’ve been keeping our eyes on the Miami area for Democratic pick-up opportunities in the House next year.  In particular, Democrats are hoping to draft former Hialeah Mayor Raul Martinez and Miami-Dade Democratic Party Chair and Cuban American National Foundation Executive Director Joe Garcia to run against the Diaz-Balart brothers.  Both of these guys would be tough opponents in districts where Democrats haven’t put up much of a fight in years.  And now, from the Miami-Dade Democratic Executive Committee blog, comes the response:

For those not on the email list of the Miami-Dade County Democratic Party, here’s what Joe Garcia said in response to the rush of interest in drafting him for Congress: “While I am still far from making a decision, I do want to say that your kindness and support are very humbling and much appreciated!” […]

Garcia’s email concluded with mention of the new web site draftgarcia.com, so I think it’s safe to say he’s not against running against Mario Diaz-Balart in District 25. In an interview Friday with Nicole Sandler on WINZ AM940, he said it was a matter of convincing his wife and young daughter that it was right for the family.

Expect a decision by the second half of January, he said. […]

Meanwhile, there’s a growing web site to draft Raul Martinez, former mayor of Hialeah, to run for Congressional District 21, the seat held by Lincoln Diaz-Balart. You can hear Joe Garcia encouraging Martinez to run, in that clip on WINZ. Again, a decision likely in January.

Garcia said he knows of a handful of possible candidates to run against Ileana Ros-Lehtinen in Congressional District 18, and he’s encouraging them to consider it strongly.

I don’t know about you, but I’m looking forward to having two or perhaps even three barn-burning races in South Florida to follow next year.

Update: Over in the diaries, Progressive America has much more info on FL-25 and Joe Garcia.

Last month, we wrote about the DCCC’s efforts to recruit challengers for the south Florida districts represented by Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and the infamous Diaz-Balart brothers (Mario and Lincoln).  Democrats are looking to line up former Hialeah Mayor Raul Martinez to take on Lincoln, and he is supposed to make a decision sometime this month on the race.

But what of the other two districts?  I have yet to hear a rumored candidate to take on Ros-Lehtinen, but there is one name floating around to take on Mario Diaz-Balart: Joe García, former executive director of the Cuban American National Foundation and current Miami-Dade Democratic Party Chair.  (You can read more about him here and here.)  Garcia has been working to recruit strong challengers in these districts, but even went so far as to suggest that he could step up to the plate in a recent interview:

Miami-Dade County Democratic Party Chairman Joe Garcia and other Miami Democrats insist the hard-line approach to Cuba taken by Diaz-Balart is wearing thin, while GOP strategists say those policies remain popular.

Garcia is seeking candidates who are well-respected in the Cuban community but who disagree with the hard-line approach taken by the three Republican incumbents on key issues related to Cuba, such as their support for travel restrictions imposed by the Bush administration that allow Cuban-Americans to visit close relatives in Cuba once every three years. […]

Garcia himself is thought to be a potential candidate, and in an interview said he’d consider a race if his party asks him.

Well, it looks like people are starting to ask him.

I think this could be a fun race, and I don’t think that the GOP is well-situated to appeal to the Cuban community in the long term, where the Iraq War and S-CHIP are as big of a set of concerns as they are everywhere else.  And, let’s face it, the GOP’s Latino outreach hasn’t been exactly spectacular in recent years.

Will Joe give it a go?

Race Tracker: FL-25

According to The Hill, Florida Democrats are seeking to put three Miami-area incumbent Republicans on the defensive next year: Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (FL-18), Lincoln Diaz-Balart (FL-21) and Mario Diaz-Balart (FL-24). Below is a chart of PVIs and Presidential voting in the three districts:

State	CD	Incumbent	Party	PVI	Kerry ’04	Bush ’04	Gore ’00	Bush ’00
FL	18	Ros-Lehtinen	(R)	R+4.3	46	54	43	57
FL	21	Diaz-Balart, Lincoln	(R)	R+6.2	43	57	42	58
FL	25	Diaz-Balart, Mario	(R)	R+4.4	44	56	45	55

It is no secret that Republicans have long dominated Cuban-American politics in Florida, where a tough stance on Cuba has long been at the forefront of the community’s political goals. The same has been true of these Miami-area districts. Interestingly, though, Kerry performed slightly better than Gore did in both the 18th and 21st districts, despite the fact that Kerry lost the state by 5% while Gore and Bush ran nearly evenly in 2000.

Could one, two, or all three of these incumbents end up being the next Henry Bonilla, the Texas Republican who got trounced by Democrat Ciro Rodriguez in a district with a similarly red PVI (R+4.2) last December? Florida Democrats are eager to put the three incumbents to the test, and are actively seeking challengers.

They may have found the candidate to give Lincoln Diaz-Balart a run for his money in Raul Martinez, the popular former mayor of Hialeah:

Martinez is exactly the kind of candidate Democrats would need to seriously challenge Diaz-Balart because their battle would take place in a district where cultural ties matter more than party affiliation, according to David Wasserman, U.S. House editor for The Cook Political Report.

“Democrats are looking more for a name than a moneyed or well-funded campaign,” he said.

Martinez, who like Diaz-Balart is a Cuban émigré, fits that bill after 25 years as mayor of Hialeah, which is the fifth-largest city in Florida, boasts a huge Cuban population and is 90 percent Hispanic.

As of 2004, Hialeah’s population has been recorded at nearly 225,000 — a good base for a challenger to draw on. Last month, Martinez quit his radio show after being asked to sign a waiver by station management promising not to run for a political office. Keeping his options open? Sounds like it to me:

“That’s Miami,” quipped Martinez, who said he believes the station came under political pressure from GOP forces trying to protect Lincoln Diaz-Balart. The incident has him leaning toward running, Martinez said.

“My family comes first, but then, my love has always been politics,” he said in an interview. He plans to make his decision by the end of October or mid-November, partly to give others enough time to prepare for a run if he decides against challenging the eight-term Republican.

Democrats are hopeful that, with strong challengers at the helm, the political landscape will shift in southeast Florida. They’re already touting polls that show Iraq and health care as the top concerns in the Diaz-Balart districts. It’s worth noting that all three of these incumbents voted against the recent S-CHIP expansion package, and in support of the president’s veto of the bi-partisan legislation. The DCCC is sensing an opportunity: they’ve begun airing Spanish-language radio ads in all three districts, hitting the incumbents hard over their unconscionable votes.

Now all we need are three challengers to take these districts for a spin.

Race Tracker: FL-18 | FL-21 | FL-25