With Miramar voters watching, Frederica Wilson endorses Miami-Dade commissioner
The race to succeed retiring U.S. Rep. Frederica Wilson and represent portions of Miramar, Broward and Miami-Dade counties just got a lot more interesting.
On Monday, the veteran incumbent who recently announced she would not seek another term endorsed Miami-Dade Commissioner and former Miami Gardens Mayor Oliver Gilbert, instantly giving his campaign a major boost in one of South Florida’s most closely watched races, her spokeswoman confirmed to the Miramar News on June 22.
Voters in the eastern part of the city, known as Historical Miramar, are represented by Wilson and will be voting in the critical Aug. 18 primary, which will thin the long list of candidates to replace her.
Wilson’s endorsement is significant in the crowded race of 10 candidates vying to represent the two-county district.
“It’s not a job for a neophyte, it’s a job for experience. You have to hit the ground running,” Wilson said of Gilbert during a weekend campaign event in Miami Gardens, the Miami Herald reported, citing a recording by Hy-Lo News.
“I need somebody who’ll fight just like I fought.”
The endorsement is significant not only because of Wilson’s longstanding influence in the predominantly Black and democratic district, but because so many prominent Democrats quickly entered the race after she dropped out.
Among them was state Sen. Shevrin Jones, who publicly described Wilson as a mentor and credited her with helping shape his career.
In a statement following her retirement announcement, Jones said, “Before she was my Congresswoman, she was my principal,” praising her decades of service and saying her impact “will be felt for generations to come.”
But Wilson looked Gilbert’s way.
Gilbert, who resigned from the Miami-Dade commission to run, called Wilson’s backing the most important support he could receive in the race.
As campaigning kicks off, Historic Miramar, which encompasses much of the city’s eastern section, is emerging as a key battleground, Gilbert and Jones told the Miramar News last week.
Though only part of the city sits within the district, every vote could prove decisive in the crowded primary.
