Lin-Manuel Miranda endorses Florida Sen. Annette Taddeo in Coral Gables

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Award-winning actor and playwright Lin-Manuel Miranda was with his Puerto Rican father Luis Miranda, a Democratic Party consultant, when he endorsed Florida Sen. Annette Taddeo on Thursday in Coral Gables.

Miranda, 42, of New York, stood on a small stage near Taddeo, a Colombian-American Democratic businesswoman running for the U.S. Congress, and other Democrats at the little square in Books & Books during a Latino Victory Fund event.

“I know that you are sick of the political stunts being played with our people,” Miranda said referring to the Florida migrant flights from Texas to Martha’s Vineyard.

Taddeo, 55, who is running to represent Florida’s 27th Congressional District, has criticized her opponent Rep. María Elvira Salazar, 60, the Cuban-American incumbent who has local name recognition as a retired Spanish-speaking talk show host, for not standing up against the migrant flights.

“You can’t be for freedom en Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela if you are not going to defend our freedom and our Democracy in the United States of America,” Taddeo said about Salazar’s stance.

Lin-Manuel Miranda — who wrote the music for “The Little Mermaid,” “Encanto,” “Vivo,” “In the Heights,” the smash-hit “Hamilton” and more — said it’s important for young Latinos to “get out the vote!”

The rally was also promoting Rep. Charlie Crist, who is running for Florida Governor; Karla Hernandez-Mats, who is running for Lieutenant Governor; Maxwell Frost, who is running for Florida’s 10th Congressional District; Janelle Perez, who is running for Senate District 38; and A.J. D’Amico, who is running for House District 113.

Giancarlo Sopo, the founder of Visto Media, a strategic communications consultancy, worked on the campaigns of former President Donald Trump and former President Barack Obama. He didn’t think the event was effective.

“Democrats have this habit of strolling into South Florida every couple of years with these Hispanic celebrities and they think that’s going to get them winning the sympathy of Hispanic voters and that’s just not how it works,” Sopo said adding “nobody cares” what Miranda “thinks about politics.”

On Wednesday, The U.S. Chamber of Commerce announced the endorsement of Salazar who attended a Republican rally with Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart and Sen. Marco Rubio in West Miami. The LIBRE Initiative, a nonprofit organization based in Texas, was also in Miami campaigning for Salazar.

Early voting starts on Oct. 24.

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