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Curbelo Wins District 26 GOP Primary

Carlos Curbelo easily won the District 26 Republican nomination to face incumbent U.S. Representative Joe Garcia in November.

Curbelo, who received an endorsement last week from former Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, won 52.11 percent of the vote with 167 of 192 precincts reporting. He was followed by Joe Martinez at 19.7 percent and Ed MacDougall at 17.2 percent.

Met by cheering friends and family, curbelo walked into his victory celebration promising to clean up politics in congressional district 26, describing a circus-like environment plagued with scandals.

"For too long, our district has been the victim of scandal, absentee ballot fraud, straw candidates," said Curbelo. "In short, a political circus that has damaged our image."

The district has seen a former congressman and the current representative embroiled in controversy.

Former Representative David Rivera is accused of being involved in federal finance scheme that has led to guilty pleas for two people, one a close associate of Rivera's. An absentee ballot controversy has also clouded the term of current representative, Democrat Joe Garcia.

Curbelo and Garcia wasted no time before taking swipes at each other Tuesday night.

"We don’t need someone like Carlos Curbelo — a lobbyist who refuses to disclose his big money clients and is only looking out for his own political interests," Garcia said in a statement after Tuesday's election.

Curbelo fired back, "Joe Garcia is one of the most corrupt members of Congress. I'm not surprised by any of his attacks."

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