I wrote this press release as communications director for Floridians for Honest Lending. It urged a consumer-focused approach to property insurance relief and promoted a series of videos we produced with FAIR. It resulted in an article in Florida Politics entitled: "Consumer advocates push accountability for bad actors, assistance for homeowners ahead of Special Session"

Today, as the Florida Legislature is set to meet this week for a special session regarding property insurance, the consumer lending watchdog group Floridians For Honest Lending and the insurance reform group Federal Association For Insurance Reform (FAIR) released an educational video about short-term and long-term solutions to fix Florida’s broken property insurance market. The video is part of a series about the increased risk of foreclosures if the Legislature fails to provide stability to Florida’s property insurance marketplace.

Sen. Ileana Garcia and Rep. Juan Fernandez-Barquin held a news conference in the Capitol on Monday to unveil legislation designed to protect Floridians from predatory foreclosure practices.

On Monday, January 31st, State Senator Ileana Garcia (SD 37) and State Rep. Juan Fernandez-Barquin (HD 119) will hold an event in the Capitol with affected homeowners and fair lending advocates, announcing new legislation designed to protect Floridians from predatory foreclosure practices from lenders and banks.

Opportunity For All Floridians sent this press release to news outlets in the Orlando area, after conducting a series of interviews with everyday Floridians who were struggling to make ends meet because they couldn’t get the state’s unemployment system to pay them the benefits they were owed. This press outreach resulted in several local news stories.

This week, Governor Ron DeSantis unveiled his legislative priorities for his special session taking aim at what he termed “unconstitutional” vaccine mandates. The legislative package included a proposal that would expand unemployment benefit eligibility to those not complying with a COVID-19 vaccine mandate. In response, unemployed Floridians who are still waiting for their own benefits spoke out about the current system. “The system is still broken,” several of them said. “What about us?”

Floridians for Honest Lending issued the following press release to call attention to an egregious case of an elderly man facing the prospect of losing his home over a $20 accounting error.

Commissioner Levine Cava’s Historic Victory Also Marks the First Democratic Mayor of Miami-Dade in 16 Years

Miami-Dade FL: Tonight, Daniella Levine Cava can claim victory in Miami-Dade County after Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents in Miami-Dade County voted in historic numbers through mail-in voting, Early Voting, and Election Day voting.

MIAMI-DADE, FL: Today the Miami-Dade Democratic Party announced that it raised more than $3 million dollars in 2020, shattering the fundraising record it had set the year before of $607,000. This banner year fundraising has provided the party with the resources to invest in robust organizing throughout the county and support local candidates in key races.

Miami, FL: Today the Miami-Dade Democratic Party launches its Haitian American Radio campaign. A combination of 320 interviews and commercials will air across 4 Haitian American radio stations beginning on Friday, September 25 and running until Election Day. The campaign will be voiced by North Miami Vice Mayor Alix Desulme and Haitian American radio personality Herntz Phanord, and will air on WQVN 1360 AM Radyo Pep La, WLQY 1320 AM Radio Tout Mou’n Jwen, WSRF 1580 Radio Haiti Amerique International, and WJCC 1700 AM Radio Mega.

Nearly two weeks after Congresswoman Debbie Mucarsel-Powell accepted three invitations to debate (two in Spanish, one in English), Carlos Gimenez has been in hiding.

The Miami-Dade Democratic Party has endorsed Luisa Santos for School Board in District 9.

Ms. Santos moved to Miami from Bogota, Colombia when she was eight and thanks to Miami-Dade County Public Schools, was speaking fluent English by nine. During her junior year at Coral Reef Sr. High, Luisa discovered she was undocumented. She persisted — starting her higher education at Miami Dade College and eventually becoming a proud U.S. citizen.

Miami-Dade, Fla. - Today, the Miami-Dade Dade Democratic Party released its second television ad in the County Mayor’s race titled “Vision.” The ad will be backed by a $250,000 Spanish & English broadcast and cable buy to share Daniella Levine Cava’s vision with Miami-Dade voters.

Miami, FL: The Miami-Dade Democratic Party will be hosting its annual Blue Gala virtually over two nights, Wednesday, July 29 and Thursday, July 30. The special event will feature a number of political leaders and talented entertainers, honoring healthcare and frontline workers who have responded with tremendous dedication during the course of the pandemic. Presidential candidate Joe Biden will close Thursday night with special remarks for the South Florida community.

“We are thrilled to support Dr. Mara Zapata in her race for Miami-Dade School Board,” said Steve Simeonidis, Chair of the Miami-Dade Democratic Party. “While Dr. Zapata has a strong background in education, what fueled her decision to run her desire to bring equity into the classroom. She knows that public education should serve the needs of all children equally. I look forward to working with Dr. Zapata when she is a member of the Miami-Dade School Board.”

“We are thrilled to support our member, Dr. Marie Flore Lindor Latortue in her race for Miami-Dade School Board,” said Steve Simeonidis, Chair of the Miami-Dade Democratic Party. “Dr. Latortue is a force of nature and changes any room she is in— for the better. I cannot wait for her to join the Miami-Dade County School Board.”