MIAMI.- Democratic candidate Eliott Rodríguez challenged Republican Congresswoman María Elvira Salazar to participate in three televised debates before the general elections on November 3, in which both will compete to represent Florida’s 27th district in the United States House of Representatives.
The proposal includes two meetings in English and one completely in Spanish, a distribution that Rodríguez’s campaign justified due to the linguistic composition of the constituency. According to Census estimates, 76% of its inhabitants speak a language other than English at home, mainly Spanish.
“I am ready—in English and Spanish—and I hope Congresswoman Salazar will join the effort,” Rodríguez said in a statement released Thursday.
The Democratic contender proposed that the meetings be organized by journalists and television stations from South Florida. Among the possible moderators and media he mentioned Jim DeFede, from CBS Miami; Glenna Milberg, from Local 10, and Telemundo 51.
The former TV presenter’s campaign assured that it is willing to “negotiate” with Salazar’s team the dates, formats and rules. The formal request asks for a response by September 1, in order to have time to coordinate transmissions.
The meetings between both candidates would take place in the month of October. The statement did not include a reaction from the Republican congresswoman’s campaign.
Two journalists face to face
Rodríguez and Salazar advanced to the general election after winning their respective primaries on August 18. The Democrat defeated former prosecutor Robin Peguero with about 54% of the votes, while the congresswoman defeated attorney V. Michael Arias with approximately 81%.
The contest pits two figures widely recognized for their careers on television in Spanish and English.
Rodríguez, 69, worked for more than four decades as a journalist and anchor for CBS News Miami. Salazar, 64, also developed an extensive career in the media before coming to Congress.
The Republican has represented the district since 2021 and is seeking a fourth term. In the 2024 elections he was re-elected with an advantage close to 20 percentage points, a result that forces Rodríguez to try to capture not only the Democratic vote, but also independents and moderate Republicans.
“Voters deserve more than campaign ads, rehearsed speeches and attacks,” said the Democratic candidate. “Let’s get face to face, answer the questions and let the voters make their own decision.”
A majority Hispanic district
District 27 is located entirely within Miami-Dade and includes sectors of Miami, Coral Gables, Kendall, Key Biscayne, Pinecrest, South Miami, Westchester, Palmetto Bay and Cutler Bay.
The district has around 789,000 inhabitants, a majority Hispanic population and a high proportion of residents born outside the United States.
Rodriguez proposed that debates focus on the cost of living, housing, homeowners insurance, health care, immigration, public safety, Social Security, Medicare and the economy.
The initiative seeks to quickly move the campaign towards a direct confrontation between the candidates, in a seat that the Republicans are trying to keep and that the Democrats consider one of their opportunities to regain ground in Miami-Dade.
