Amid early voting in Florida, tensions flared outside a Miami polling center as supporters of the key Senate candidates, Rick Scott (Republican Party) and Debbie Mucarsel-Powell (Democratic Party), engaged in a heated clash that required police intervention. Scott, seeking re-election as a Republican, held an event in Kendall, Miami-Dade County, reported Telemundo 51. However, the arrival of a campaign bus for his political opponent escalated the situation.
Mucarsel-Powell was seen walking just a short distance from Scott, which further intensified the atmosphere, although no physical altercations occurred. "On November 5, we're going to turn this state completely red. Trump will be our next president, and my opponent will fall," Scott declared at the rally, one of his final events before the November 5 elections.
Comparisons to Authoritarian Regimes
The Democratic candidate criticized the behavior of Scott's supporters, likening their actions to the oppressive regimes of Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua, where censorship and repression are rampant. According to the television network, the line of voters taking advantage of early voting on Sunday remained steady throughout the weekend, marking the first weekend of early voting in South Florida.
Trends and Predictions
Statistics bolster these observations, with 2,250,914 voters having already cast their ballots early in Florida, a majority of whom are registered Republicans. A recent survey by Florida International University (FIU) indicates that 68% of likely Cuban-American voters in Miami-Dade plan to support Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.
In contrast, only 23% of Cuban-Americans in Miami-Dade intend to vote for Democratic vice-presidential candidate Kamala Harris, with 5% remaining undecided. Projections also suggest strong backing for Senator Scott, with a predicted 50% support, compared to just 19% for his Democratic challenger, Mucarsel-Powell, in the Senate race.