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Café Con DeSantis: Hundreds Rally Outside Versailles For Last-Minute Campaign Stop

Nearly 100 supporters of Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis gathered outside Versailles in Little Havana Thursday as the former congressman made a last-minute stop just a few days before Election Day. 

Milly Gonzalez grew up in West Miami after escaping from Cuba with her family at only 5-years-old. She said she's voting for DeSantis because she's afraid socialism is taking over the country. 

“Coming from a socialist communist country, that we escaped, I don’t want that for this country,” she said, adding that her "main issue is abortion." 

Republican Enrique Tarrio, who grew up in Little Havana, chanted "CNN Sucks" and "Cubanos Con DeSantis" at the event.  

In the heart of Little Havana, Versailles has long been political hotspot.

“Versailles brings out the best people in Miami, and it’s central -- the Trump Administration, the Marco Rubio campaign, everyone comes here,” Tarrio said.

Little Havana has been a reliable Republican stronghold since the 1980s. But an aging Cuban-American electorate and shifting demographics has steadily turned it more blue. Earlier this year, Democrat Eileen Higgins was elected to the Miami-Dade County Commission, representing the neighborhood.

Former President Barack Obama will campaign for Democratic nominee Andrew Gillum on November 2 at the Ice Palace Film Studios in Miami. 

Nearly a hundred supporters of Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis gathered outside Versailles Cuban Bakery on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018.
Lily Oppenheimer / WLRN
/
WLRN
Nearly a hundred supporters of Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis gathered outside Versailles Cuban Bakery on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018.
Nearly a hundred supporters of Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis gathered outside Versailles Cuban Bakery on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018.
/ WLRN
/
WLRN
Nearly a hundred supporters of Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis gathered outside Versailles Cuban Bakery on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018.
Supporters of Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis gathered outside Versailles Cuban Bakery on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018.
Lily Oppenheimer / WLRN
/
WLRN
Supporters of Republican gubernatorial candidate Ron DeSantis gathered outside Versailles Cuban Bakery on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2018.

Copyright 2018 WLRN 91.3 FM

Under a Missouri School of Journalism fellowship, I spent my last college semester in New York City editing and producing videos for Mic, an innovative news startup in One World Trade Center. After late nights of deadlines, finessing video pieces, bonding with coworkers and experimenting with editing techniques, I produced and filmed my own mini-documentary focusing on evolving Mic video strategies.