Wasserman Schultz campaign falsely claims Broward Black Caucus endorsement
Wasserman Schultz’s campaign site lists a Broward Black Caucus endorsement the group says it never gave, deepening a fight over FL-20 and Black political representation.
Debbie Wasserman Schultz’s campaign website lists an endorsement from the Broward County Democratic Black Caucus, but the caucus never endorsed her for any office. The dispute sits inside a Broward County Democratic primary already roiled by race, district lines and control of Florida’s 20th Congressional District.
On May 4, the Broward County Democratic Black Caucus publicly asked Wasserman Schultz not to run in FL-20. The district has been “an anchor of Black political representation for over three decades” and “Black voters have always been the soul of the Democratic Party.” The caucus then held a candidate forum on May 19, where five of the six Democratic contenders appeared and attendees worried that Wasserman Schultz could enter a fractured field and win easily.
Wasserman Schultz formally announced on May 22 that she would seek reelection in FL-20, intensifying criticism from Black Democratic leaders over the district remaining in Black political hands. On May 26, 10 of the 15 elected Florida Democratic National Committee members condemned her decision, calling it an undercut to Black political representation in a district that has long been central to Broward’s Black electorate.
The Democratic Black Caucus of Florida later urged Wasserman Schultz to run in FL-22 instead of FL-20. FL-22 is a better fit for her record and a district Democrats could compete for without displacing Black representation in Broward. The clash is unfolding in the middle of Florida Republicans’ mid-decade redistricting, which made Wasserman Schultz’s former CD-25 more Republican-leaning and reshaped FL-20 into a heavily Democratic Broward seat with large African American and Caribbean American populations.
Alcee Hastings won the seat in 1992 as the area’s first Black representative since Reconstruction and served until his death in 2021. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick later held the district before resigning amid ethics and legal scrutiny, leaving FL-20 without an incumbent.
The crowded primary now includes multiple Black candidates, among them Elijah Manley, who called the district a majority-Black primary electorate that needs stability and representation.
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