![\"U.S.](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MIA_poldonaldseventAGS055.JPG\" "\\"U.S.")
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U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, the Republican nomine for Florida governor, arrives to his campaign event on Aug. 17 at El Tropico restaurant in Sunny Isles Beach.<\/p>\n
Alie Skowronski<\/p>\n
askowronski@miamiherald.com<\/p>\n
The Republican candidate for Florida\u2019s next governor, Byron Donalds, is expected to announce his running mate at the Freedom Tower in downtown Miami Tuesday \u2014 and there\u2019s a good chance it\u2019ll be a Cuban-American politician from Miami.<\/p>\n
The Freedom Tower is a symbolic location to make a \u201cspecial announcement,\u201d as the event is formally being billed, emphasizing Miami\u2019s key electoral significance heading into the November election. The location once served as an asylum center for Cuban refugees and is now a museum dedicated to Cuban history.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s indicative of the value of Miami,\u201d Miami-Dade Republican Party Chairman Kevin Cooper said.<\/p>\n
Gov. Ron DeSantis \u2014 with Miami\u2019s Jeanette Nu\u00f1ez as his running mate \u2014 flipped Miami-Dade red in 2022, winning by more than 11% after losing the county his first election campaign. Donald Trump then won Miami-Dade County in 2024, garnering a 12% lead over Democrat Kamala Harris.<\/p>\n
For Donalds, who\u2019s endorsed by Trump, building a strong base of support in Miami is a key part of his path to the governor\u2019s mansion. But Trump\u2019s waning popularity<\/a> amid aggressive immigration crackdowns and worsening affordability concerns could signal trouble in South Florida.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Trump coalition that helped put him in again in 2024 \u2014 which was younger people, younger men in particular, the Cuban population in South Florida pulling in larger than expected numbers for him \u2014 as far as I can tell, that coalition has, if not completely collapsed now, really fallen apart quite a bit,\u201d University of North Florida pollster Sean Freeder said earlier this month.<\/p>\n A running mate from Miami \u2014 home to more voters than any other county in the state \u2014 could help bolster that coalition for Donalds heading into November. He captured 58% of Republican voters in Miami-Dade during last week\u2019s primary election, a significantly higher margin than his statewide margin of 48%.<\/p>\n Donalds failed to capture 17 counties in the primary, mostly in rural areas with almost entirely white<\/a> Republican electorates \u2014 and will need to run up his margins in places like Miami if that trend continues into November.<\/p>\n He\u2019s running against David Jolly, a former Republican congressman who switched parties and won the Democratic nomination last week. Jolly announced in Tallahassee in June that his running mate would be Gwen Graham, a former congresswoman and daughter of former Florida Gov. Bob Graham.<\/p>\n The Graham family has its own connections to Miami-Dade, having developed much of Miami Lakes, where the Jolly campaign gathered to watch primary results roll in.<\/p>\n Cooper, the local GOP chairman, argued that a Miami-based lieutenant governor\u2019s candidate on the Republican ticket would not be an indication of Donalds\u2019 weakness in Miami-Dade, but a signal of its importance.<\/p>\n \u201cIn presidential politics, they look for someone who will kind of help them with their weakness,\u201d Cooper said. \u201cI\u2019m not so sure that\u2019s what\u2019s happening here, I think it\u2019s just an addition to an already good team. You\u2019re going to bring someone who understands Miami, who gets Miami, who understands the culture of Miami and the business element.\u201d<\/p>\n Miami state senators on the list<\/p>\n Donalds\u2019 lieutenant governor shortlist, first reported by POLITICO<\/a>, has been circulating for weeks, and there are a couple Miami lawmakers on the list that would make sense to announce at the Freedom Tower.<\/p>\n That list includes state Sen. Bryan Avila, a 42-year-old veteran with the Florida Army National Guard who has represented Cuban-majority Miami communities in the state House and Senate.<\/p>\n He touts his designation as the \u201cMost Conservative Member of the Legislature in 2024,\u201d according to a Republican group, on his campaign website and recently sponsored legislation putting the constitutional amendment to cut property taxes<\/a> on November\u2019s ballot. He did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n Another Cuban American, Republican state Sen. Ana Maria Rodriguez, 49, has also been under consideration, she confirmed to the Herald\/Times. She represents southwest Miami-Dade, the Florida Keys and part of Monroe County. She\u2019s a former lobbyist, Doral councilwoman and state representative who touts herself as an \u201cindependent\u201d voice advocating for small businesses and tax cuts in the legislature.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m honored and humbled that he would consider me for this position,\u201d she told the Herald\/Times Monday. \u201cI am very happy serving in the Florida Senate, and look forward to helping Congressman Donalds in whatever capacity that looks like.\u201d<\/p>\n Florida GOP committeeman and Miami state Rep. Juan Carlos Porras said either of the two Miami state senators would be \u201cphenomenal\u201d and help connect Donalds\u2019 campaign to Miami voters.<\/p>\n It\u2019s \u201csuper important I think for name ID and getting the message across to voters here in the area that we will have someone that knows our community and that cares about our issues,\u201d Porras said. He said he briefly talked about the position for himself with the Donalds\u2019 campaign as well, but at 29, is too young to serve in the role under Florida law.<\/p>\n One of Donalds\u2019 closest Florida allies in Congress, Gainesville Rep. Kat Cammack, has also been floated as a potential running mate. Her office declined to comment. And Palm Beach State Rep. Meg Weinberger, who led the initiative to rename Palm Beach International Airport after Trump, was named as a possible pick, first reported by the Floridian<\/a> earlier this summer.<\/p>\n She said in a statement Monday, \u201cRight now, my focus is on serving the people of my district and doing everything I can to help Byron Donalds win in November.\u201d<\/p>\n Donalds\u2019 campaign declined to comment on their decision-making process. After Miami\u2019s event Tuesday, Donalds is heading across the state with his \u201cspecial guest\u201d to Sanford in the early afternoon and St. Petersburg in the evening.<\/p>\n El Nuevo Herald staff writer Veronica Egui Brito contributed to this report.<\/p>\n This story was originally published August 24, 2026 at 5:32 PM.<\/p>\n![\"Local](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/MIA_103ByronDonalds02NEWPPP.JPG\" "\\"MIA_103ByronDonalds02NEWPPP.JPG\\"")
Local elected officials including, from left- Juan Carlos Porras, Florida Representative, Francis Suarez, former City of Miami Mayor and City of Miami Commissioner Rafael \u201cRalph\u201d Rosado, joined U.S. Congressman Byron Donalds at la Ventanita area for a \u201cCuban Cafesito\u201d at the Versailles Cuban Cuisine restaurant in Little Havana, for an \u201cAsk Byron Anything\u201d meet-and-greet event as part of his campaign to run in the 2026 Republican primary for Florida governor, on Monday, March 02, 2026. Pedro Portal pportal@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n![\"Sen.](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2023-03-07T203607Z_2080646917_MT1USATODAY20165682_RTRMADP_3_SEN-BRYAN-AVILA-FLIPS-THROUGH-A-BOOK-AND.jpeg\" "\\"2023-03-07T203607Z_2080646917_MT1USATODAY20165682_RTRMADP_3_SEN-BRYAN-AVILA-FLIPS-THROUGH-A-BOOK-AND-STOPS-TO-READ-A.JPG\\"")
Sen. Bryan Avila flips through a book and stops to read a page featuring him and Miami-Dade during opening day of the 2023 Florida Legislative Session, Tuesday, March 7, 2023. Alicia Devine\/Tallahassee Democrat USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co <\/p>\n![\"Sen.](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2025-03-04T160752Z_522016184_MT1USATODAY25574891_RTRMADP_3_SEN-ANA-MARIA-RODRIGUEZ-SPEAKS-WITH-HER-F.jpeg\" "\\"2025-03-04T160752Z_522016184_MT1USATODAY25574891_RTRMADP_3_SEN-ANA-MARIA-RODRIGUEZ-SPEAKS-WITH-HER-FELLOW-SENATORS.JPG\\"")
Sen. Ana Maria Rodriguez speaks with her fellow senators during opening day of the Florida legislative session on Tuesday, March 4, 2025. Alicia Devine\/Tallahassee Democrat USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co <\/p>\n