Claudia Villatoro launches bid to unseat Debbie Wasserman Schultz

Republican Claudia Villatoro thinks Democratic U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz has failed to deliver for Floridians during her ample time in Congress, and it’s time voters make a change.

Villatoro is running in Florida’s 25th Congressional District to unseat Wasserman Schultz, who has served in Congress for 20 years.

During that time, Wasserman Schultz has sponsored three bills that become law: the Legislative Branch Appropriations Act of 2010, the EARLY Act Reauthorization of 2014 and a resolution last year to study the potential transfer of a museum.

That’s a better rate than South Florida’s senior delegation member, Republican Mario Díaz-Balart, who hasn’t seen a bill he’s been the primary sponsor of become law since 2004. But it’s still insufficient, according to Villatoro, a former commodities broker who said Wasserman Schultz has instead prioritized “open borders,” enriching herself through “insider trading” and orchestrating “rigged elections for Hillary Clinton.”

Notably, Wasserman Schultz does not advocate for “open borders” and has instead advocated for a comprehensive approach to immigration reform that combines a formal, legal immigration process and border security with a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants already in the U.S.

There is also no public evidence that Wasserman Schultz “enriched herself” through insider trading. Like many members of Congress, she trades individual stocks and periodically files required STOCK Act disclosures. She has, however, been cited by watchdogs and media for late disclosures — a reporting violation — including this past July, when she was found to have violated the STOCK Act for a fourth time.

As for “rigged elections,” leaks from internal messages at the Democratic National Committee (DNC) in 2016 — which Wasserman Schultz chaired at the time — revealed favoritism for Clinton over presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. The violation of DNC’s neutrality norms prompted Wasserman Schultz to resign as Chair that year, and the DNC apologized to Sanders, whom many today still believe would have beaten Clinton in an unbiased Primary.

“Time to wash away Debbie Wasserman Schultz and her failed politics. Florida deserves fresh leadership. That’s why I’m running for Congress,” Villatoro says in a 90-second campaign launch video.

The video features heavy use of glass-related terms and imagery, a handheld pressure washer and photos of President Donald Trump and Republican U.S. Rep. Jimmy Patronis.

“I am an entrepreneur and philanthropist, an immigrant who followed the rules. Running a glass company taught me to always be crystal clear, fully transparent and as strong as steel,” Villatoro adds.

“I’ve broken glass ceilings, campaigned tirelessly for justice and freedom and fought child trafficking around the world. I’ve stood with President Trump to secure our borders and keep America strong. South Florida needs leaders who will listen to you and never crack under pressure. I’m Claudia Villatoro, and the choice is clear. It’s time to clean up Congress.”

Villatoro, 57, was born in Guatemala and immigrated legally to the U.S. in 1994. After working for years in the glass industry, she launched her first company in 2002 and “grew it into several successful ventures across Florida, New Mexico, and California,” according to her campaign, which said President George W. Bush recognized her as “Businesswoman of the Year” in 2003.

Around that same time, she landed a federal contract with White Sands Missile Range.

In 2009, after the Great Recession hit, Villatoro joined the Chicago Board of Trade, where she remained a member until 2020.

The following year, she founded the nonprofit Villatoro’s Global Foundation, which her campaign website says is “dedicated to fighting child trafficking, malnutrition, and water insecurity.”

The organization launched in St. Petersburg and later relocated to Hollywood, where Villatoro ran unsuccessfully for City Commission last year. The organization is not rated by Charity Navigator or GuideStar.

This past May, the IRS revoked the tax-exempt status of Villatoro’s Global Foundation after it failed to file proper documentation for three straight years. A ProPublica analysis of the organization’s books indicates it has no revenue, expenses, assets or liabilities.

Villatoro is running on a promise to lower the cost of living, secure the southern border while supporting legal immigration, empower small businesses and entrepreneurs, and protect children from crime and trafficking.

She also vows to support American energy independence, defend constitutional freedoms and “reject the socialist policies she and her family fled in Latin America.”

Neither Villatoro’s campaign launch video nor press release mentioned reporting on how the Trump family has made billions in cryptocurrency ventures or how the President recently pardoned crypto tycoon Changpeng Zhao, who pleaded guilty in 2023 for failing to combat money laundering tied to terrorism and child abuse.

Zhao’s company, Binance, was financially involved with crypto platform World Liberty Financial, which sends 75% of token sales revenue to a Trump-linked company.

Trump claimed in a new “60 Minutes” interview to have “no idea” who Zhao is.

In 2024, Villatoro donated $5,000 to Joyce Bryan’s Broward County School Board campaign, $2,500 to the Republican Party of Florida and $1,000 to Chris Eddy, who challenged Wasserman Schultz last cycle.

She also gave $500 to George Navarini, a perennial candidate for the Florida House.

She is one of two Republicans running now to supplant Wasserman Schultz, who beat Eddy in November by 9 percentage points. The other is Michael Carbonara, a 42-year-old fintech executive who raised nearly $900,000 in crypto last quarter.

Last week, Florida Bulldog reported on three ongoing lawsuits filed against Carbonara or his company.

One filed in Miami involves the alleged sexual assault and abuse of an employee in Singapore by a co-owner of Carbonara’s company, Ibanera. Another in Miami centers on claims that Ibanera failed to transmit at least $18 million in fiat and crypto funds to a Bahamian bank.

The third, filed in Michigan, revolves around a bitcoin mining operation linked to Carbonara that allegedly created excessive noise, prompting residents to complain and the Judge presiding over the case to temporarily shut the facility down.

Wasserman Schultz has raised about $1.25 million this cycle and has $1.62 million in cash on hand.

CD 25 covers the southernmost portion of Broward County, including Davie, Hollywood, Miramar, Pembroke Pines, Weston and parts of Plantation. The district has a D+5 partisan voting index, according to Cook Partisan Voting — a composition Villatoro’s campaign says puts the seat long held by Wasserman Shultz, 59, “firmly in play for Republicans.”