Miami

Raquel Regalado Announces Run For Congressional Seat Being Vacated by Illena Ros-Lehtinen

A familiar name to South Florida politics is entering the race to replace longtime U.S. Representative Illena Ros-Lehtinen in 2018.

Raquel Regalado, a former Miami-Dade school board member who lost her bid for Miami-Dade mayor last year, announced that she's running for the District 27 seat being vacated by Ros-Lehtinen, who announced her retirement last month.

Regalado is the daughter of Miami mayor Tomas Regalado and launched her campaign at an event in Little Havana last night. Regalado says she'll work on getting money from the federal government to focus on issues, not only affecting the district, but all of Florida as well.

“It’s important for people to understand that a moderate Republican will have a bigger impact inside the room than a Democrat outside in the hall,” Regalado said. “I think it is a wonderful opportunity for a Hispanic woman to replace the first Hispanic woman that went to Congress.”

Other names rumored to be considering a run on the Republican side are Miami-Dade commissioner Bruno Barreiro, Florida Lt. Gov. Carlos Lopez-Cantera and Dr. Maria Peiro. On the Democratic side, State Senator Jose Javier Rodríguez, Miami Beach commissioner Kristen Rosen Gonzalez and businessman Scott Fuhrman – who lost to Ros-Lehtinen in 2016 – have been mentioned as possible candidates.

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