Puerto Rico, as a territory of the United States, cannot take part in presidential elections and has little say in the decisions of the federal government. But Puerto Rican voters on the mainland have a great deal of influence. The swing state of Florida in particular could be decided by just a few hundred votes.

So it was good to see a few hundred voters turn out for the Political Salsa gathering last night. Among the speakers:

  • Jose Alvarez
  • Art Otero
  • Congressman John Mica
  • State Senator Darren Soto
  • State Representatives Bob Cortes
  • Mike Miller
  • Rene “Coach P” Plasencia
  • Victor Torres
  • John Cortes
  • Orange County Commissioner Pete Clarke
  • State Attorney Jeff Ashton
  • Aramis Ayala
  • Peter Vivaldi
  • Carlos Guillermo Smith
  • Linda Stewart
  • Rick Roach
  • Shae Silverman
  • Amy Mercado
  • Alex Barrio
  • Benny Valentin
  • Ryan Yadav
  • Spike Hopkins
  • Tony Fernandez
  • Dave Sklarek
  • Jose Sanchez

The moderators:

  • Scott Powers with Florida Politics
  • Guillermo Hanson with the Osceola Star
  • Orlando Political Observer Editor and Writer Frank Torres

Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump were there in the form of cutouts, and their supporters grabbed selfies with their favorite candidate. A straw poll was taken; results have not yet been released.

A party atmosphere reigned even when the rhetoric got heated. See the video at Political Salsa’s Facebook page.

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