SOFLA Congressional Primary Results: Shalala Vs. Salazar

MIAMI, FL — Former University of Miami President and Clinton administration insider Donna Shalala won the right to take on Emmy-Award-Winning journalist Maria Elvira Salazar in November for Florida's 27th Congressional District. The two are vying to replace Republican Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who is retiring.

Shalala, a former Clinton administration Cabinet member won the Democratic nomination for Ros-Lehtinen's District 27 seat, which covers a large swath of Miami-Dade County, including parts of Miami, Miami Beach, Coral Gables, Cutler Bay, Key Biscayne, Pinecrest, South Miami and Westchester.

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Shalala defeated four candidates Tuesday in the Miami-area race with 31.9 percent of the unofficial vote. David Richardson earned 27.4 percent followed by Kristen Rosen Gonzalez with 17.5 percent, Matt Haggman with 16.9 percent and Michael A. Hepburn with 6.1 percent.

Salazar took 40.5 percent of the Republican vote as compared to Bruno A. Barreiro with 25.7 percent, Maria Peiro with 7.8 percent, Stephen Marks with 7 percent, Angie Chirino with 6.8 percent, Bettina Rodriguez Aguilera with 4.3 percent, Michael Ohevzion with 3.8 percent, Elizabeth Adadi with 2 percent and Gina Sosa with 1.9 percent.

The seat is widely viewed as one of the Democrats’ best chances for a pickup. The 77-year-old Shalala served eight years as President Bill Clinton’s Health and Human Services secretary. She also was also president of the University of Wisconsin.

Shalala banked that voters would see her experience as an asset. The Democratic candidates had similar positions on most key issues, such as tackling climate change, reducing gun violence, improving health care, and overhauling immigration. But none could match Shalala’s lengthy record or familiar name.

Saying "today is about beginnings; It's not about endings," Ros-Lehtinen chose not to seek re-election in 2018. She was first elected to Congress in 1989 as the first Hispanic woman to hold that office.

"I'm confident that my constituents would have extended my term of office further should I have chosen to do so. But we must recall what the Bible says: To everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under the heaven," she said with her husband, Dexter, by her side. "The time has come for me to seek a new challenge and the season has come for me to look at other adventures that life has for me."

Since coming to office in a special election, Ros-Lehtinen has been a powerhouse in Congress, serving as chairman emeritus of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and chairman of the Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa. She has been a strong supporter of the state of Israel and human rights while also been a vocal opponent to the Castro regimes in Cuba.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Donna Shalala (left) and Maria Elvira Salazar courtesy congressional campaigns