Political insider, Republican-turned-Democrat seek South Dade House District 115 seat

The vacancy created by Republican state Rep. Vance Aloupis has drawn two candidates who hope to represent House District 115, which includes parts of Cutler Bay, Palmetto Bay, Pinecrest and West Miami.

Republican Alina Garcia operates rental properties through her small real estate business. She has spent decades in political circles, including working as chief of staff and senior policy adviser for former Hialeah Mayor Esteban Bovo; deputy chief of staff for Miami Commissioner Joe Carollo, as well as his special assistant while he was mayor; and regional director for Jimmy Patronis, the state’s Chief Financial Officer. In 1999, Garcia worked as the first legislative aide for then-state Rep. Marco Rubio.

“I think it’s also very important, when you’re running for office and you get elected, to have the time and the means to support yourself without having to struggle with that. This is a perfect time for me because I turned 65 and I retired,” she said. “And I want to serve my community.”

Democrat Christie Cantin Davis, 54, managed the marketing budget for Carnival Cruise Line from 2000 to 2010. Since then, she has worked for her brother’s insurance company.

“Sometimes there’s the idea that, because I haven’t navigated Tallahassee, there’s some weakness there,” she said. “Running a multi-million-dollar budget for a major cruise line, then navigating through an unforgiving, very rigid health care system where you’re dealing with people’s emotions and money, is a challenge every day that I face.”

The Palmetto Bay resident said she spent about half her life as a Republican.

“I grew up in a typical household that revered Reagan,” Cantin Davis said. “At that time I pretty much followed in my parents’ footsteps in voting Republican.”

Cantin Davis said her perspective changed after the passing of her father, and while “raising Gen Z” children. The shift happened around 2010, she said, recalling voting for John McCain in 2008 and Barack Obama in 2012.

“It’s a beautiful thing to watch how that generation really sees life,” she said of her children, now in their late teens and early 20s. “It’s much more open, much more fluid, not so much having to have everything defined or explained.”

Cantin Davis said she differs from other Democrats on the Second Amendment. “People assume because you’re a Democrat, you want to take their guns away,” she said.

Cantin Davis, who is pro-abortion rights, said the overturning of Roe v. Wade is part of what motivated her to run for office.

Garcia, 65, described herself as Catholic and anti-abortion. She said she supports the state’s 15-week abortion ban, but declined to say if she supports an outright ban on abortion.

“I don’t want to go back to the days where women were dying having abortions in the alleys,” Garcia said. “That’s completely unacceptable.”

She said it should be up to Florida voters to decide on a total abortion ban.

“The question is, what does the state of Florida believe? Do they believe that life starts at conception?” Garcia said. “Whatever the people of the state of Florida decide, that would be the rule of the land.”

Garcia expressed support for the “Parental Rights in Education” law, also referred to as the “Don’t Say Gay” legislation, which prohibits teaching about gender identity or sexual orientation for kindergarten through third grade.

“The school has its place and the family has its place,” she said. “I taught my children about sex education. I don’t want the school teaching them.”

“There are things that are best taught at home,” Garcia added.

Cantin Davis condemned that new education law, calling it “so gross.”

Garcia has greatly outraised her opponent, with over $600,000 in contributions, according to campaign finance records. That figure includes more than $100,000 of in-kind donations. She has received endorsements from AFSCME, the South Florida Police Benevolent Association and the Florida Nurses Association.

Cantin Davis has raised about $12,100, which includes a $2,000 loan to herself. Her endorsements include Florida Planned Parenthood, the Florida LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus and the Democratic Progressive Caucus of Florida.

Tess Riski

Miami Herald

Tess Riski covers Miami City Hall. She joined the Miami Herald in 2022 and has covered local politics throughout Miami-Dade County. She is a graduate of Columbia Journalism School’s Toni Stabile Center for Investigative Journalism.