PINECREST, Fla. — With early voting set to begin Monday in Miami-Dade, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries joined former CBS News Miami anchor Eliott Rodriguez Friday on the campaign trail for Florida’s 27th Congressional District, signaling Democrats think they have a shot at flipping the seat blue as they seek to regain the House.

Jeffries blamed Republican policies for making life unaffordable in South Florida, pointing to increases in gas prices and the costs of tariffs and immigration enforcement, which has left immigrant communities living in fear. He said Rodriguez was the man for the job.

“Eliott is a man of intelligence. He’s a man of inspiration. He’s a man of privilege. He’s going to help us clean up the mess in Washington. D.C.,” he said at the event held at CAO Bakery and Cafe in Pinecrest.

Rodriguez is running to unseat incumbent Republican Rep. María Elvira Salazar in a Republican-leaning district. The state’s congressional map has been redrawn since Salazar was reelected two years ago with 60% of the vote, but the district remains largely the same, including most of the land south of the Dolphin Expressway and east of the Florida Turnpike.

Jeffries’ visit follows the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s upgrade of Rodriguez’s race to its “Red to Blue” program, as recent polls have shown the race is tight. Although the upgrade did not come with additional funding, Jeffries said Friday that he would be “a forceful and strong advocate” to ensure the Democratic Party was doing everything it could to provide Rodriguez with the resources needed to reach South Floridians.

Ofelia Montes de Oca, a 56-year-old resident who has lived in Pinecrest for 40 years, was among those in the crowded cafe. She erupted with excitement as Jeffries entered alongside Rodriguez.

“I love him. He’s a fighter,” she said as she pushed through the crowd to get a photo of the two men together.

Montes de Oca, who is a Democrat and plans to vote for Rodriguez, said she was frustrated with the status quo and had shown up to support the candidate because she didn’t want her kids and grandchildren saddled with high grocery and gas prices. She said what was going on with the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigrant communities was “bad.”

“People are exhausted. People are tired of what we are facing. The prices, everything is very, very bad at this moment, and we are screaming for a change,” she said. “I’m here, supporting my family, supporting my kids, supporting my grandkids, because I want a better future for them.”

Immigration was top of mind for many in the room. Jeffries said there needs to be a “dramatic” change to the Trump administration immigration-enforcement policies, which he says have been inhumane. He said one of the things Democrats have done in Congress is “continue to make clear that Donald Trump’s violent mass deportation machine does not get a dime.”

“There’s a lot of repair work that is going to have to be done to correct the injustices that have been inflicted on the American people and on law-abiding immigrant families,” he said.

And if Democrats win back the House, he said they’ll be prepared to do that work.

Salazar, who is endorsed by Trump, has also hinted she understands that immigration enforcement is a key factor in her race. Last month she released an ad criticizing Trump’s immigration policies, saying that Hispanics feel betrayed by the president. The ad was met with hostility by Trump supporters, who called on him to rescind the endorsement.

Salazar’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

Rodriguez emphasized to his supporters that it was important that Democrats take back Congress. He said they “did not vote for this economy. (They) did not vote for this immigration policy that is cruel and inhumane and is impacting our community.

“We need a change of direction.”

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