Robin Peguero’s slow burn could turn into real heat for 2026 CD27 primary

Back in October, Robin Peguero was already doing something most first-time congressional candidates struggle to pull off: raising serious money, fast.

In his first quarter in the race for Florida’s 27th Congressional District, the former federal prosecutor and congressional investigator of the Jan. 6 riot hauled in more than $330,000, according to the Federal Elections Commission report. It was fueled by over 2,500 donors — including a six-figure burst in the first 24 hours after he launched. At the time, Peguero’s campaign bragged it was the strongest showing by any Democratic challenger in a targeted Florida district that cycle..

That was the early signal.
Now comes the confirmations.
Last week, Peguero picked up endorsements from the Congressional Black Caucus PAC, a heavyweight nod representing 62 members of Congress and the Senate. He had already been endorsed by the Congressional Hispanic Caucus’s BOLD PAC, placing him among a very small group of candidates nationwide embraced by both caucuses. In CD27, where 81% of the voting-age population is Black or Hispanic, that dual backing is not just symbolic. It’s strategic.
These are the kind of endorsements that don’t go to hopefuls — they go to candidates that party leaders think can win. And this, in a district that hasn’t been kind to them in the past.
“Robin Peguero has dedicated his career to public service, from prosecuting homicides in Miami to investigating the violent insurrectionists who stormed the Capitol on January 6,” said CBC PAC Chair Gregory Meeks, calling him “the commonsense leader we need in Congress.”
For a district Democrats have long written off as a lost cause, that’s a notable shift in tone.
Then he announced an endorsement from former Miami-Commissioner Katy Sorenson, an icon of local politics — who is, in fact, not dead, just quietly watching behind the scenes since she shut down in 2016 the Good Government Initiative, a non-profit which tried to train electeds and would-be electeds about ethical standards. Of course it didn’t last. But she gets an A for effort.
Sorenson still has some pull with diehard Dems in the district, and her coming out of “retirement” for the first time in a long time is telling.
There are two other Dems in the primary, each wanting a chance to unseat Republican Congresswoman María Elvira Salazar. Environmental entrepreneur Richard Lamondin, another newbie with good fundraising, more than $450,000 since he announced in May — but no notable endorsements — and accountant Alexander Fornino, who nobody knows and is largely self-financed. Former Key Biscayne Mayor Mike Davey — who lost a primary bid in the district last year — withdrew from the race and endorsed Peguero, who seems to have the momentum right now.
Read related: Democrat candidate Richard Lamondin steps up for absent Maria Elvira Salazar
An Afro-Latino and the son of Dominican and Ecuadorian immigrants, Peguero has leaned hard into his résumé — not as biography fluff, but as proof of seriousness. His background includes prosecuting violent crime, serving as an investigator for the January 6 Committee, and working as chief of staff to Democratic Congressman Glenn Ivey. He now teaches law at St. Thomas University and has published two novels, a detail that still surprises people who expect candidates to come in one dimension.
“I’ve served and been mentored by a number of CBC members,” Peguero said in a statement. “Now, I’m proud to have them in my corner in the fight for Miami’s working and middle-class families.”
The CBC endorsement lands atop a coalition that’s been quietly forming since the fall. Former U.S. Rep. and former cabinet secretary Donna Shalala signed on early. Longtime Democratic power broker Joe Geller, a former state rep and current Miami-Dade Public School Board Member, a man who chaired the Miami-Dade Democratic Party during some of its most successful years, also pledged his support.
“Robin Peguero will fight for you and me in Congress,” Geller said, adding that he has the right position on everything from healthcare and housing to defending democracy itself. He believes that Peguero is the candidate to “take back this seat.”
Other endorsers include  former state Reps Annie Betancourt and J.C. Planas, Coral Gables Commissioner Melissa Castro, Cutler Bay Council Member B.J. Duncan, and Key Biscayne Councilmember Franklin Caplan.
And then there’s the money — again.
In the most recent reporting quarter, Peguero out-raised even the incumbent, not just his Democratic primary rivals. That’s a data point Democrats in Washington actually pay attention to, especially in a district Salazar won last cycle by nearly 21 points.
None of this means the race is suddenly easy. Salazar is a seasoned incumbent with national Republican backing and a proven ability to outrun Democrats in Miami-Dade. Peguero still faces a contested primary, and Lamodin is being pushed by political operative Christian Ulvert, who just had a couple big wins in Miami and Miami Beach.
But what started last summer as a relatively quiet launch has matured into something louder: a campaign with cash, credibility, and now institutional buy-in.
Robin Peguero may still be new to voters in FL-27. But he’s no longer new to the people who decide which races matter. He’s gone from what looked like a novelty to a possible frontrunner.

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