A Democrat knocks on doors in Little Havana

Eliott Rodriguez, a seventy-year-old Cuban American former news anchor, campaigns for Congress in Florida's Twenty-seventh District, a majority-Hispanic area covering central Miami.

Republicans dominated the district until now

In 2020, the district narrowly elected Republican María Elvira Salazar, also a Cuban American former news anchor.

Salazar initially embraced Trump's immigration stance

Last year, Salazar declared that Alligator Alcatraz, an immigrant-detention center in the Everglades, met the highest standards. She avoided criticizing Trump when he terminated Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelans, Haitians, and Nicaraguans.

Miami leads the nation in ICE arrests

Miami has become the nation's leader in ICE arrests, with a surge in deportations occurring as Salazar continued to embrace Trump and the MAGA movement.

Salazar breaks with Trump over immigration

A few weeks ago, Salazar released an ad breaking with Trump over immigration enforcement, warning him that Latino voters who helped him win in twenty twenty-four felt betrayed by his policies.

“Mr. President, some of your immigration enforcement efforts have gone too far.”

Trump's approval rating hits a record low

Trump's approval rating has hit a record low, currently hovering in the mid to low thirties.

Salazar's ad sparks a fundraising windfall for Rodriguez

Salazar's attempt to distance herself from Trump sparked a fundraising windfall for Rodriguez's campaign from national donors who saw the dysfunction as a sign the seat was potentially flippable.

Political forecasters shift the race outlook

Political forecasters shifted the seat from likely Republican to lean Republican. Some pollsters even called it a toss-up, a dramatic change from Salazar's twenty-point victory in twenty twenty-four.

Rodriguez targets unaffiliated voters

With a little more than a month to go, Rodriguez's campaign was relentlessly targeting voters with no party affiliation, who make up thirty percent of the district and more than twenty-four percent of Florida's registered…

Rodriguez is a household name in Miami

Rodriguez is well known in the area as a former local news anchor who covered Miami's biggest stories, including the Mariel boatlift and Hurricane Andrew, and reported from inside Communist regimes.

“Rodriguez is essentially a household name for Miamians of a certain age.”

Trump attacks Salazar on Truth Social

Trump reposted more than a dozen posts attacking Salazar on Truth Social after her ad.One post read, She is nothing but a back stabber.Another said, So we need a NEW Republican to Replace Salazar.

“She is nothing but a back stabber.”

Salazar claims Trump was receptive to her concerns

Salazar appeared on CBS News' Face the Nation, saying she spoke with Trump and had a fantastic conversation with him, adding that he was courteous and very receptive.

Arianne Betancourt confronts Salazar at church

At a Mass at Our Lady of Lebanon church in Little Havana, Arianne Betancourt confronted Salazar, saying her father was detained at Alligator Alcatraz and that Salazar's staff had told her the congresswoman supported immigration…

“You were talking about enforcement. I wanted to interrupt. My name is Arianne Betancourt. My father was in Alligator Alcatraz.”

Betancourt's father was detained at a routine check-in

Betancourt's father was detained at a routine check-in at ICE's Miramar field office. She waited in her car all day and received a call at nine PM with his voice telling her he was in…

Betancourt now advocates for detained immigrants

Betancourt now works for an immigrant-rights group called the Workers Circle and said she confronted Salazar on behalf of nearly eight hundred families with loved ones detained in South Florida facilities such as Krome.

A poll shows Trump voters regretting their choice

A twenty twenty-five poll of mostly long-term Venezuelan immigrants in Florida by Florida International University's Latino Public Opinion Forum found that thirty-five percent had family or a close friend affected by termination of Temporary Protected…

Immigration enforcement becomes a personal issue

Susan Whitman-Helfgot, co-finance chair of Democratic Hispanic Caucus of Florida, said that when immigration enforcement affects families personally, it changes voter sentiment.

“It changes when it's personal. When you're Venezuelan, and you've had a family member thrown out, it's a whole different ballgame.”

Even Trump supporters are questioning their choice

A lawyer in the district related the story of a Republican colleague who remained a Trump supporter until a few weeks ago, appalled by the lack of due process in immigration court.

“She told me she would probably stay home.”