Democratic congressional candidate Eliott Rodriguez demanded his Republican opponent, U.S. Rep. María Elvira Salazar, return more than $100,000 in campaign contributions from a top donor facing criminal charges in Honduras.
“María Elvira Salazar has become the poster child for Washington’s culture of corruption, political hypocrisy, and contempt for accountability,” Rodriguez said in a statement late Friday. “Her conduct raises serious questions about her judgment, integrity, and fitness to serve in Congress.”
The statement by Rodriguez was issued after the Miami Herald reported Friday that Salazar's largest donor this election cycle — Lenir Pérez — contributed $112,000 to her congressional re-election campaign and affiliated political committees while facing criminal environmental charges in Honduras.
Salazar did not respond to the Miami Herald or issue any public statements about Pérez and his contributions to her campaign.
"What did this donor expect in return for his extraordinary financial support?" asked Rodriguez. "And why won’t Salazar answer the questions South Florida voters have every right to ask?"
READ MORE: Salazar’s biggest donor accused in Honduras of environmental crimes, corruption
Rodriguez and Salazar are competing for Florida's 27th congressional district in a race that has garnered national media attention. The district includes Miami, Coral Gables, Palmetto Bay and Cutler Bay. Almost three in four residents are Latino.
In his statement Friday, Rodriguez slammed Salazar's past campaign donations from figures linked to the communist Cuban government.
In 2023, Salazar, R-Miami returned two donations her congressional campaign received from Manuel Rocha, the former U.S. ambassador in Latin America from Miami who was convicted for being a covert agent for Cuba for decades.
Earlier this year, Salazar said she would give a $3,900 contribution from Fernando Valdés Pérez — a Kendall man U.S. authorities say was deported after being identified as a spy for the Cuban government — to "organizations fighting for a free Cuba."
“Salazar lectures this community about standing against the Cuban regime, yet her campaign accepted contributions from two men later exposed by federal authorities as serving that regime,” Rodriguez said. “Now another major donor faces serious criminal allegations. Voters have, yet again, every reason to demand answers from her.”
The Herald reported Friday that Lenir Pérez, according to charging documents, has been accused of overseeing a mine and an ore processing plant that, under his leadership, illegally exploited mineral and forest resources in a national park in the northern part of the country.
Campaign finance records show Pérez — who maintains his innocence — has contributed a total of $105,000 to Salazar’s joint fundraising and leadership political committees this year, plus an additional $7,000 to her candidate committee on May 5. He also contributed $88,000 to the National Republican Congressional Committee that day, according to the Herald.
