FDP ad quotes Republican mayors to hammer Carlos Giménez COVID-19 response

Image via the Miami Herald.

The Florida Democratic Party is out with a new digital ad highlighting mayors in Miami-Dade County, several of whom are Republicans, who have criticized the county government’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Giménez is running as a Republican for the seat in Florida’s 26th Congressional District against Democratic Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell.

The critical quotes come from a late July League of Cities news conference featuring several local mayors. The FDP ad cites comments from four mayors who argued Giménez was short-changing them on federal relief money approved under the CARES Act.

The mayors claimed the county had said local governments would receive $135 million out of $474 million in available funds. The county eventually approved just $30 million for local governments.

“Maybe we should amend the Florida Constitution to abolish the county,” said Coral Gables Mayor Raúl Valdés-Fauli.

Added Doral Mayor Juan Carlos Bermudez, “Mayor Giménez claimed that nobody reached out to him. I’m gonna tell you right now that’s a lie.”

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez piled on, stating, “We have no faith and confidence in the [county] government.”

Hialeah Mayor Carlos Hernández, also a Republican, sarcastically dubbed Giménez “Mr. Know It All” in criticizing his distribution of those funds.

The FDP ad highlights those comments before asking, “If other mayors don’t trust ‘Corrupt Carlos,’ why should we?” The 30-second spot then encourages viewers to vote for the incumbent Mucarsel-Powell.

“Republican mayors throughout Miami-Dade have said it better than anyone: Nobody trusts Corrupt Carlos Giménez,” added FDP Spokeswoman Alexandra Caffrey.

“If these guys want to abolish the County Mayor’s office because of Giménez’s corruption, why does he think he deserves a promotion?”

Florida Politics has reached out to the Giménez campaign for a response to the ad and will update if they comment.

The FDP has leapt into the race before to go after Giménez. Mucarsel-Powell has called her 2020 reelection bid “one of the toughest” congressional contests in the country. Election forecasters currently see the race as a toss-up.