Florida's Latest News

Cuba hard-liners on opposite sides of likely future Florida House speaker’s primary

An upstart bid to defeat a Cuban-American state representative in line to become one of the most powerful politicians in Florida is placing some of Miami’s Cuba hard-liners on opposite sides of an unlikely Republican primary.

Gabriel Garcia, a little-known construction contractor whose House District 116 campaign against Rep. Daniel Perez appears to be almost entirely funded by political committees, received a bump last week when he won the endorsement of Marcell Felipe, the president of the Miami-based Inspire America Foundation. Felipe said in an interview that he decided to support Garcia after learning that Perez snapped engagement photos with his now-wife in Cuba in 2017 — a trip that the incumbent has repeatedly defended as a family trip to visit his fiancée’s sick uncle.

Hot zone? Florida Republicans told to ‘get tested’ after lobbyist who attended their fundraiser now positive for coronavirus

A Florida lobbyist who attended a recent Republican fundraiser near Jacksonville has tested positive for COVID-19.

The lobbyist attended a reception at the Ponte Vedra Inn and Club on Thursday.

House Speaker-designate Chris Sprowls confirmed the situation.

“I have called every member present and we are in the process of calling every attendee to notify them. We are encouraging all of them to self-quarantine and/or get tested as soon as possible. While there were precautions made available, further gatherings in the near future have been canceled,” Sprowls said.

Cuomo will fine Floridians and other visitors for Covid-19 violations

Visitors to New York from states where Covid-19 infections are on the rise could face a $2,000 fine if they fail to provide information about where they plan to quarantine for two weeks, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Monday.

In a tweet posted Monday afternoon, Cuomo wrote that out-of-state visitors from “high COVID states” must provide contact information when they arrive in New York.

“If you fail to provide it, you will receive a summons with a $2k fine,” Cuomo wrote in the tweet. “We’re serious about enforcing quarantine.”

COVID-19 and Florida's governor could tank Trump's renomination festivities

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and the deadly pandemic sweeping through his state could help decide whether President Donald Trump gives his acceptance speech next month at the Republican National Convention to a packed crowd — or to a lot of empty seats.

Florida is operating under an executive order DeSantis enacted to combat the spread of the coronavirus, which requires all big sports venues to operate at no more than 50 percent capacity, the governor's spokeswoman, Helen Aguirre Ferré, confirmed.

That includes VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, the 15,000-seat venue where Republicans intend to gather Aug. 24-27 to hold the hoopla-packed part of Trump's nomination for a second term.