Democrat Robin Peguero’s campaign to supplant Republican U.S. Rep. María Elvira Salazar next year just added an endorsement from the political arm of the Congressional Black Caucus.

The Congressional Black Caucus PAC (CBC PAC), which represents 62 members of the federal Legislature, said it’s backing Peguero, whom it described as “the commonsense leader we need in Congress.”

“Robin Peguero has dedicated his career to public service,” the group said in a statement, “from prosecuting homicides in Miami to investigating the violent insurrectionists who stormed the Capitol on January 6.”

Peguero, a self-described Afro-Latino born to Dominican and Ecuadorian immigrant parents, also carries support from the Congressional Hispanic Caucus’ BOLD PAC. According to his campaign, only two sitting members of Congress hold endorsements from both CBC PAC and BOLD PAC.

The new nod joins others from Miami-Dade School Board member Joe Geller, Key Biscayne Council member Franklin Caplan, Coral Gables Commissioner Melissa Castro, Cutler Bay Council member B.J. Duncan, former U.S. Rep. Donna Shalala, former state Reps. Annie Betancourt and J.C. Planas, and ex-Key Biscayne Mayor Mike Davey, who withdrew from the race for Florida’s 27th Congressional District and immediately endorsed Peguero in August.

Peguero called CBC PAC’s support “an honor.”

“I’ve served and been mentored by a number of CBC members,” he said in a statement. “Now, I’m proud to have them in my corner in the fight for Miami’s working and middle-class families.”

A former federal homicide prosecutor born to immigrant parents from the Dominican Republic and Ecuador, Peguero’s government bona fides include a stint as an investigator for the congressional Jan. 6 Committee and work as Chief of Staff to U.S. Rep. Glenn Ivey, a Maryland Democrat.

Today, he works as a novelist and professor at St. Thomas University College of Law.

Peguero will face at least two Primary opponents in Florida’s 27th Congressional District: accountant Alexander Fornino and entrepreneur Richard Lamondin.

Through the last reporting period that ended Sept. 30, Peguero raised $330,000, while Lamondin amassed $453,000 and Fornino collected $25,000.

Salazar, meanwhile, has amassed $681,000 since winning re-election to a third term last year by 21 percentage points. She also has more than $1.64 million in reserves, according to Federal Election Commission records.

CD 27 — one of three Florida districts that the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has highlighted as “in play” — covers Miami, Coral Gables, Cutler Bay, Key Biscayne, Pinecrest, North Bay Village, South Miami, West Miami and several unincorporated areas.

Gov. Ron DeSantis is reappointing two current members to the Greater Miami Expressway Agency (GMX).

The reappointments of Richard Blanco and Fatima Perez now move to the Senate for confirmation, where lawmakers will weigh in on the leadership of the agency responsible for managing and maintaining Miami-Dade’s major toll road network.

Blanco, currently the Chief Technology Officer at Internos Group, LLC, brings a technology and business background to the Board. In addition to leadership roles at Business Network International and planIT Systems, Inc., Blanco holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Florida International University.

Perez, a veteran of state and local politics, serves as Director of Koch State Government Affairs. Her résumé includes time as Chief of Staff for the City of Miami Beach, partner at Southern Strategy Group, and public policy manager at Akerman. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Florida State University and a Master of Public Administration from Florida International University.

Both appointees have been central figures at GMX, which oversees the region’s all-electronic toll expressway system — including the Dolphin (SR 836), Airport (SR 112), Don Shula (SR 874), Snapper Creek (SR 878) expressways and the Gratigny Parkway (SR 924) — that serves as a key artery for commuters in Miami-Dade County.

The agency, formerly known as the Miami-Dade Expressway Authority (MDX), transitioned to state control following a high-profile legal battle that culminated in 2023, when a Leon County judge dissolved MDX. That transition aimed to clarify governance and give the state a stronger hand in the system’s operations and long-term planning, particularly regarding toll pricing.

State law lays out a nine-member governing body for GMX with appointments by the Governor, Miami-Dade County and the county’s metropolitan planning organization. Appointees must have experience in fields such as transportation engineering, tolling or planning.

Perez, who presently chairs the governing Board, and Blanco, who serves as Board secretary, will be positioned to continue shaping the agency’s direction.