MIAMI (WSVN) - Incumbent U.S. Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar has won the battle for congressional House District 27 in Tuesday’s midterm elections.
The now reelected Republican lawmaker danced on stage right before she spoke to supporters at an election party held at La Carreta restaurant, located along the 3200 block of Southwest Eighth Street, Tuesday night.
“2022 has been the year of the Hispanic Republicans,” she said.
The former TV news anchor, 61, defeated her Democratic opponent, Annette Taddeo.
With 100% of precincts reporting, Salazar held a nearly 15-point lead, 57.4% to Taddeo’s 42.6%.
Salazar thanked her supporters at her victory celebration.
“My message to the voters: thank you, thank you very much for believing that I could represent your values and your principles and that I can do a good job on your behalf,” she said.
District 27 encompasses a large swath of Miami-Dade County, including Miami, Kendall, Coral Gables, Miami Beach and Key Biscayne. The district has the highest population of voting-age Hispanics in the state.
It was in Key Biscayne where the incumbent made a last-minute push for votes, Tuesday afternoon.
“I am someone that, regardless of the political party, I represent District 27, which is one of the ultimate melting pots in this country,” she said.
Taddeo conceded defeat in her speech to supporters.
“We need to respect democracy, unlike what we’ve seen from some Republicans. They only accept elections when they win,” she said. “I can tell you that I accept the election results, and I congratulate Maria Elvira.
Taddeo, 55, also had a message for her fellow Democrats.
“Our message needs to match our values if we’re going to ever win in Florida again,” she said, “and to do that, we must be present, not just come election time, but all the time.”
During her victory speech, Salazar spoke about the importance of closing the southern border and working together with Democrats for the American people.
“My voters rejected the direction in which the country is heading right now, but I want to say that tonight begins a new dawn,” she said. “Republicans and Democrats cannot spend the next two years rejecting each other in Congress like I lived in the last cycle.”
The congresswoman said it’s taken a lot to reach this moment, but now it’s time for her to get back to work.
“We have sent, during this election, a very clear message to Washington: stay out of our way and out of our pockets,” she said.
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