Donna Shalala files to run for Ileana Ros-Lehtinen’s House seat
Donna Shalala has until next month to file her financials.

Donna Shalala

Former University of Miami President Donna Shalala is running to replace retiring Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, according to paperwork filed with the Federal Election Commission.

Shalala, a Democrat, served as Health and Human Services secretary under President Bill Clinton. Well-known in the region, Shalala, 77, is considered a top choice for the Democratic nomination.

With access to the Clinton family’s big-pocketed donors, Shalala has the potential to be a formidable fundraiser.

But some of her strengths could be also be weaknesses.

Another Democrat in the race, Miami Beach Commissioner Kristen Rosen Gonzalez, told Politico earlier this year said that Shalala represented the “elite” of the party.

Shalala was popular during her tenure at the University of Miami, but she also weathered a number of scandals. In one case, environmentalists criticized Shala after she sold a piece of land for development that they said should have been preserved.

Ros-Lehtinen, a moderate Republican, is leaving a Congress after 28 years in office. Most political observers see her Miami district as an easy win for Democrats in November. The district favored Hillary Clinton for president by 19 points.

Republicans have had troubling recruiting high-profile candidates. A number of GOP officials told the Miami Herald in January that the seat was “unwinnable.”

Miami-Dade County Commissioner Bruno Barreiro and songwriter Angie Chirino are currently running for the Republican nomination.

Meanwhile, the race has attracted a host of candidates on the Democratic side.

Other Democrats running include former Judge Mary Barzee Flores, state Sen. Jose Javier Rodriquez, state Rep. David Richardson, former Miami Herald reporter and Knight Foundation director Matt Haggman and Miami Commissioner Ken Russell.

That crowded field may narrow now that Shalala has entered the race.

Material from ABC 10 was used in this post.

Staff Reports



#FlaPol

Florida Politics is a statewide, new media platform covering campaigns, elections, government, policy, and lobbying in Florida. This platform and all of its content are owned by Extensive Enterprises Media.

Publisher: Peter Schorsch @PeterSchorschFL

Contributors & reporters: Phil Ammann, Drew Dixon, Roseanne Dunkelberger, A.G. Gancarski, Anne Geggis, Ryan Nicol, Jacob Ogles, Cole Pepper, Gray Rohrer, Jesse Scheckner, Christine Sexton, Drew Wilson, and Mike Wright.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @PeterSchorschFL
Phone: (727) 642-3162
Address: 204 37th Avenue North #182
St. Petersburg, Florida 33704




Sign up for Sunburn


Categories