‘A strong voice for working people’: SEIU Florida backs Annette Taddeo for Miami-Dade Clerk

Former state Sen. Annette Taddeo’s bid to become Miami-Dade County’s first elected Clerk since fellow Democrat Harvey Ruvin now has support from one of Florida’s largest unions.

SEIU Florida, which represents approximately 80,000 health care, education, aviation and county government workers, is backing Taddeo to be the chief custodian of Miami-Dade’s records.

“Sen. Taddeo has been a strong voice for working people throughout her time in public service and our members proudly endorse her to be Miami-Dade’s Clerk of the Court and Comptroller,” said Martha Baker, President of SEIU Florida and Executive Director of SEIU Local 1991, which endorsed Taddeo in May.

“Miami-Dade’s next Clerk of the Court and Comptroller will have the power to help workers across our county by championing policies that help lift people out of poverty rather than trapping them in it, and Annette Taddeo is the candidate with the vision to make it happen.”

The SEIU Florida nod joins others Taddeo received from 32BJ SEIU, Latino Victory Fund and Ruth’s List Florida since she filed to run for the job in February.

Taddeo called her most recent endorsement “an honor.”

“I’ve been fighting for our workers every day that I’ve been a public servant and I won’t ever stop,” she said. “Together, let’s keep working to build a community that cherishes and lifts up our workers.’

Taddeo represented parts of Miami-Dade in the Legislature’s upper chamber from 2017 to 2022, when she ran for Congress but lost to Republican U.S. Rep. María Elvira Salazar. She has also served as Chair of the Miami-Dade Democratic Party.

She is now competing in the Clerk’s race against former Republican state Rep. Juan Fernandez-Barquin. Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed Fernandez-Barquin as Clerk last year after the death of Ruvin, who died after serving as Clerk for 30 years.

No-party candidate Rubin Young has also qualified for the contest. He’s running as a write-in candidate.

The General Election is on Nov. 5.