Eliott Rodriguez reports $500K raised, wave of endorsements as third rating shift hits CD 27 race

Less than three months into his congressional campaign, former TV journalist Eliott Rodriguez is building strong momentum in his bid to flip Florida’s 27th Congressional District.

The veteran CBS anchor-turned-Democratic candidate announced this week that his campaign has raised more than $500,000 since he entered the CD 27 race in March — a milestone, his campaign said, that eclipses what any of his current or former Primary opponents managed in the same time span.

Rodriguez’s fundraising announcement Thursday comes alongside a plethora of endorsements and a notable development in how independent forecasters are viewing the race.

Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball this month became the third nonpartisan outlet to shift CD 27 in Democrats’ favor following Rodriguez’s entry, joining CQ/Roll Call and Cook Political Report, which marked similar movements in March and April.

Rodriguez’s new endorsers include Pembroke Pines Mayor Angelo Castillo, Pinecrest Vice Mayor Jerry Greenberg, Miami-Dade Community Council member Johnny Farias, Key Biscayne Council member Michael Bracken, Palmetto Bay Council member Patrick Fiore, Pembroke Pines Commissioner Mike Hernandez and El Portal Police Chief David Magnusson.

He also notched nods from former state Representative and Miami-Dade County Democratic Party Chair Mike Abrams, former state Senator and Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber, former state Representative and Miami Beach Commissioner Luis Garcia, former 11th Judicial Circuit Judge Stan Blake, former Miami Beach Mayors Matti Bower and Neisen Kasdin, former Miami Shores Mayor Spero Canton, former South Miami Mayor Mary Scott Russell, former Palmetto Bay Mayor Shelly Stancyzk, former Miami Beach Vice Mayor Michael Góngora, former Coral Gables Commissioner Maria Anderson, former Key Biscayne Council member Alan Fein, former Miami Beach Commissioner Kristen Rosen Gonzalez and former American Bar Association President Steve Zack.

Farias, Fein, Gelber and Greenberg previously supported another Democratic candidate, but have since switched their support to Rodriguez, a press note from his campaign said.

“People across this district are tired of politicians who spend more time chasing headlines than delivering results. Families are struggling with soaring housing costs, out-of-control insurance rates, rising grocery bills, and a cost-of-living crisis that is making it harder and harder for people to stay in the community they love,” Rodriguez said in a statement.

“This campaign is about fighting for the people who feel like they’re falling behind despite working hard every day. But it’s also about protecting the democratic values, freedoms, and institutions that generations of Americans fought to build. People want leaders who will lower costs, defend democracy, reject extremism, call out rampant corruption, and restore a sense of seriousness and decency to public life.”

CD 27, one of four 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.

Republican U.S. Rep. María Elvira Salazar has represented the district since 2020, when she supplanted Democrat Donna Shalala. Both Rodriguez and Salazar are Cuban American former television journalists.

Rodriguez announced his candidacy March 10, citing immigration and Miami’s affordability crisis as key catalysts. He reported raising $312,000 over his first 21 days.

Internal polling by Rodriguez’s campaign found him leading the Democratic Primary field with 43% support, a 27-percentage-point advantage over his nearest competitor, former federal prosecutor Robin Peguero.

Soviet-born businessman Lev Parnas, a Donald Trump supporter-turned-critic, is also running in the Primary.

Salazar, meanwhile, faces a challenge from GOP candidate Vincent Arias.

The Primary is Aug. 18, followed by the General Election Nov. 3.