Trump Effect Continues As Florida Vice Mayor Switches To Republican Party

In the 2024 election, there was a huge shift to the right, as counties across the country rejected the failed policies of the Biden administration and embraced Donald Trump once again.

Continuing the trend, the City of Doral, Florida Vice Mayor Maureen Porras announced she’s left the Democratic Party and registered as a Republican, citing “socialist ideas” she says have seeped into the left.

As The Floridian notes;

This is yet another big blow to the core of the Florida Democratic Party. Vice Mayor Porras becoming a Republican all but confirms that a growing number of Democrats, both at the municipal and state level, do not see a future or a way forward as registered Democrats.

After the 2024 Presidential election, two Democratic state representatives Hillary Cassel and Susan Valdes changed their party affiliations to Republican.

Poras told The Floridian that she grew frustrated with the Democrat party, and praised Donald Trump’s reelection, characterizing his win over VP Kamala Harris as “a clear and resounding message from voters that our country needed a strong leader,” adding “President Trump’s leadership transcends all levels of government.”

She added that the Democratic party doesn’t represent her “values and those of the majority of Americans.”

“Democratic Party has progressively moved further and further away from representing my values and those of the majority of Americans,” Porras continued.

The Floridian: What brought you to the decision to leave the Democratic Party and become a registered Republican?

Porras:For the past two years, as the only Democrat elected official in Northwest Miami Dade, I have worked closely with my Republican colleagues, friends, and neighbors. Throughout this time, we have found several commonalities and have worked together to uphold important values that define us and our community, including faith and family. I have felt strong support from Republican leaders in my work as a Councilwoman and now Vice Mayor of the City of Doral – support that I did not receive from Democratic leadership.

The Floridian:  Do you feel the Democratic Party has moved so far to the extreme fringe in politics that it does not represent your values and the values of the majority of Americans?

Porras: I feel that over the last couple of years,  the Democratic Party has progressively moved further and further away from representing my values and those of the majority of Americans. They have prioritized minority opinions and neglected to understand and address the real issues affecting our communities. That is why I cannot continue to represent a party that does not represent me or the community that I represent.

The Floridian: Did President-elect Trump’s mandated victory in 2024 influence your decision to jump ship?

Porras: President-elect Trump’s victory was a clear and resounding message from voters that our country needed a strong leader. President Trump’s leadership transcends all levels of government, becoming especially important in our city where he was able to intervene on behalf of our residents to keep a garbage incinerator from being rebuilt in our community. If it weren’t for his intervention, our community’s well-being and health would suffer. I am grateful as an elected official and resident that he cared enough about our community when other local leaders did not.

The Floridian: Also, considering that your family is from Nicaragua, do you believe or do you feel that the Democrat party has embraced some or many of the socialist values that have taken hold of Latin America?

Porras: Sadly, I have seen socialist ideas and beliefs from communist regimes seep into the Democratic Party and different Democratic groups. As an immigrant whose family fled the Nicaraguan communist regime and as an immigration attorney representing families fleeing socialism from Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Cuba, I cannot support advancing these ideas.

Read the rest here…