It has been rumored for some time that Donna Shalala was eyeing a bid for FL-27, the House seat left open by Ileana Ros-Lehtinen’s retirement at the end of this term. Yesterday, she made it official:
Donna Shalala, the former University of Miami president and Health and Human Services secretary, is officially running as a Democrat to replace retiring Republican Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, according to Federal Election Commission paperwork filed Monday.
Shalala, 77, has never run for elected office, but her presence shakes up a crowded Democratic primary in a district that includes most of Miami Beach, downtown Miami and coastal Miami-Dade County. The district favors Democrats, as Hillary Clinton defeated President Donald Trump by 19.7 percentage points there in 2016.
I have mixed feelings about this. This is a district that is absolutely naturally blue. Back when I grew up here, it was the unchallenged domain of one of the liberal lions of the House Dante Fascell. It was a shock to me when Ros-Lehtinen won it but once she was in she was unbeatable. I long ago gave up lobbying my mom to vote against her. After the first couple of cycles, the Democratic Party didn’t even try fielding a serious candidate against her.
With the opening of the seat, we’ve had a flood of serious contenders appear. I’ve been looking at Miami Beach Commissioner Kristen Gonzalez as my choice, but there are several others — particularly Sen. Jose Javier Rodriguez who has up to now marginally led in the polling.
Shalala is obviously the 800 pound gorilla in the race now. I won’t hesitate to support her in the general if and when she wins the primary. But to be honest I was hoping to get someone younger in there who could hold this seat for a couple of decades.