In Florida’s 26th District, Cuba is not a distant issue. It is a big part of our community. It is family, friends, and loved ones. It is the reason so many people here understand what it means to leave everything behind, and still fight for the country you love.
That’s why we need change. Not slogans. Not politics. Cuban families are facing blackouts, shortages of food and medicine, and an economy that is not working for them. These conditions didn’t appear overnight. They are the result of decades of failure from a Cuban government that has restricted freedom and mismanaged its economy. It is also from U.S. policies that have isolated Cuba without delivering meaningful change.
Let me be clear: the Cuban government has failed its people. It has denied political freedom, limited opportunity, and punished dissent. Nothing excuses that. But after more than 60 years of the same U.S. approach, we also have to ask a hard question: what have our leaders actually done?
The United States has maintained a broad economic embargo on Cuba for generations designed to pressure the government. In practice, broad restrictions on trade, financing, and access to global markets have made it harder for Cuba to obtain essential goods, including fuel, medicine, and infrastructure support.
When those systems fail,
When the power goes out,
When hospitals don’t have what they need,
It is not government officials who suffer.
It's always the people. It's the Cuban families that go without.
After six decades, the results are clear: the embargo has not brought democracy to Cuba. It has not ended political repression. It has contributed to hardship for ordinary people. If a policy hasn’t worked in 60 years, we have a responsibility to rethink it. Why is nothing being done about it?
I’ve spoken with families here in South Florida who still have loved ones on the island. People who go to sleep wondering if their relatives have power, access to medicine, or enough food. This isn’t abstract. It’s happening to our community every single day and they deserve leaders focused on solutions, not just rhetoric.
For years, politicians like Ron DeSantis and Mario Díaz-Balart have built entire political brands around talking about Cuba. Decades of the same approach. Strong rhetoric is not a strategy. Repeating the same policies without results is not leadership. What results have they delivered?
If we are serious about supporting the Cuban people, then we need policies that actually do that. Being “for the people” means rejecting false choices. We can hold two truths at once:
1. The Cuban government must be held accountable for repression and corruption
2. U.S. policies that worsen human suffering without achieving change must be re-evaluated
A smarter, more effective, and somewhat obvious approach would be target the regime, not the people!
Focus sanctions on officials responsible for corruption and human rights abuses, instead of broad restrictions that impact an entire population. Apply pressure where it matters, but allow greater access to food, medicine, humanitarian aid, and civilian infrastructure, especially energy.
If elected, I will targeted sanctions on corrupt officials, not blanket hardship.
I will work with international partners to stabilize access to fuel and essential services so families are not left in the dark (literally). I will expanded humanitarian access to food, medicine, and energy support. I will work to expand internet access and communication tools so Cubans can connect, organize, and advocate for their future. I will protection of family connections through remittances and travel.
I will do the work our past leaders only talk about.
I will push policies focused on real outcomes.
The Cuban people are not a talking point. They are not a political strategy. They are human beings who deserve freedom, dignity, opportunity, and they don't have to fight this on their own.
Florida's 26th District needs an official that actually cares about people, not politics.
I am asking you for the chance to deliver real results for Cuba.
