Miami Dems to Celebrate Investing Locally by Recognizing 5 Florida Democratic Leaders

The Miami-Dade Democratic Party is excited to announce that it will present awards to five outstanding Florida Democratic leaders at the party's first-ever Blue Gala, taking place Sunday, November 17th at the Biltmore in Coral Gables.

The Lifetime Civic Leadership award will be presented to the Honorable Carrie P. Meek; the Party Leader award will be given to longtime Democratic champion and DNC Committeemember Stephen Bittel; Senator Oscar Braynon will receive the Legislative Champion award; Representative David Richardson will receive the Breaking Barriers award; & prolific Democratic fundraiser Jon Adrabi will receive the Rising Star award. 

"The goal of the Blue Gala is to raise annual funds essential to sustaining our work building a local progressive movement in Miami," said Miami-Dade Dems Chairwoman Annette Taddeo-Goldstein. "So it is also a perfect opportunity to celebrate some of the south Florida Democratic heroes who have opened doors, blazed trails, elected candidates, and passed laws that continue to make our state more equitable and more progressive." 

Congressman Joe Kennedy III, Ed Schultz Coming to Miami for First-Annual Blue Gala

Congressman Joe Kennedy and MSBNC's Ed Schultz will join Miami Democratic elected officials, community leaders, and supporters for the first-annual Blue Gala hosted by the Miami-Dade Democratic Party on Sunday, November 17th at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables.

"Since he was elected to Congress, Joe Kennedy has emerged as a leader fighting for social justice and economic opportunity for all Americans," said Miami Dems chair Annette Taddeo-Goldstein. "He has a long, bright future ahead of him, and we are excited to welcome him to Miami."

Today Broward County is expected to pass a resolution defying Governor Rick Scott's ban of Obamacare navigators from county health offices, joining Pinellas as the second county to resist the navigator ban. 

"We applaud Broward Mayor Kristin Jacobs and county commissioners for resisting Governor Scott's outrageous attempts to deny Floridians access to health care information," said Miami-Dade Democratic Party Chair Annette Taddeo-Goldstein. 

Mayor Gimenez plans to eliminate Miami-Dade County's Health Care Planning Department on October 1st, the same day a major change to the health care system takes effect nationwide: brand-new online health exchanges open and enrollment begins.

The planning department is in charge of providing strategic solutions to help residents find insurance and planning for changes in health care. Currently 800,000 residents of Miami-Dade, or a third of our population, lack any health insurance.

By slashing the department from the budget, Mayor Gimenez follows the lead of Governor Rick Scott and tea party Republicans to sabotage the Affordable Care Act and prevent low-income Americans from accessing life-saving, affordable health coverage.

In a startling setback for civil and voting rights in the U.S., conservative justices on the Supreme Court today struck down the core of the Voting Rights Act – a law that for decades has protected the vote for millions living in states with a history of voter suppression.