Ryan Nicol
Democratic Sen. José Javier Rodríguez is releasing a new campaign ad centered on his response to the COVID-19 outbreak in South Florida.
Republican candidate Ileana Garcia is challenging Sen. Rodríguez for the Senate District 37 seat this fall. Non-party affiliated candidate Alex Rodriguez also qualified.
Sen. Rodríguez has been vocal about providing relief to families affected by the pandemic. Thursday, he released ads in English and Spanish highlighting his goal to further that work next Session.
“The crisis families face today is like no other,” Sen. Rodríguez begins in the English version.
“Our small businesses are struggling to hang on and too many worry when their next paycheck will come. I’m José Javier Rodríguez and I’m holding political leaders accountable. Fix the unemployment system. Provide needed aid to our businesses. Lead with science to get through this pandemic. As your state Senator, I will always fight for you because you deserve nothing less.”
Sen. Rodríguez made several pushes early on in the pandemic. He was among many Democrats urging Gov. Ron DeSantis to issue a statewide stay-at-home order in March. DeSantis eventually acceded to those calls in early April.
In mid-April, Sen. Rodríguez also urged officials and voters to prepare for an increase in mail voting. That’s an issue which has been at the forefront of the national conversation in recent weeks.
The issue on which Sen. Rodríguez arguably focused the most is the state’s struggle with its unemployment system.
For months, Democrats hammered DeSantis for the state’s delays in paying out those claims. In early June, Sen. Rodríguez testified in Washington before the Senate Finance Committee where he labeled Florida’s unemployment system “slow, unreliable and inept in general.”
Now, the Senator is highlighting those efforts as he campaigns for reelection in SD 37.
“Republican leadership in Tallahassee’s refusal to act during this pandemic has left far too many Floridians on their own at a time of crisis for so many families,” Sen. Rodríguez said Thursday.
“Throughout this time, I’ve remained focused on holding those political leaders to account, working with our small businesses to provide them with much needed aid while fixing our broken unemployment system for workers, and ensuring the decisions we make are based on science and protecting public health. I’m excited to continue to serve the people of District 37 after I am reelected this fall.”
