The Democratic candidate for Congress in Florida's 27th District, Robin Peguero, pledged to close the immigration detention center known as Alligator Alcatraz and harshly criticized Republican Congresswoman María Elvira Salazar for endorsing the conditions of the facility.
Peguero, former homicide prosecutor in Miami and a Harvard graduate, gave a interview to CiberCuba in which he directly accused Salazar of having visited the center and stating that the conditions were acceptable.
"The congresswoman remains silent, says nothing... She visits Alligator Alcatraz - which I believe needs to be closed - and says the conditions are more or less good. And she uses the word cages, and yes, they are cages, people in cages, but she uses it without issue. As if she didn't care," stated the candidate.
In response to the direct question of whether he cared that there were people in cages, Peguero answered straightforwardly: "Yes, of course I do."
Her stance was firm: "We need to close Alligator Alcatraz. We need due process. We need dignity. Dignity, not citizenship. True dignity is defending people in our community and shutting down detention centers like Alligator Alcatraz."
The candidate also accused Salazar of remaining silent about the mass deportations of Cubans under the Trump administration, noting that "this administration is the first that has deported significantly more Cubans than any other administration in history."
Peguero, the son of Dominican and Ecuadorian immigrants raised in Hialeah, asserted that the Cuban community would be safer with him in Congress. "I grew up with Cubans. I have such friendships with Cuban people, and for me, what’s important is that I am an immigrant or the child of immigrants, but I identify with that struggle," he declared.
The candidate also presented an anti-corruption plan the week before the interview, which includes a maximum age limit for running for Congress, a ceiling of 12 years of legislative service, and a total prohibition on Congress members purchasing shares in companies they oversee.
In that context, he directly accused Salazar: "Congresswoman Salazar has finished buying shares in defense companies that she oversees as a member of the Foreign Relations Committee. That does not seem fair to me, it is corrupt, it is unethical."
Alligator Alcatraz, located in the Everglades of Florida, has been the subject of systematic complaints about inhumane conditions since its opening in July 2025, including overcrowding of up to 32 people per cage, showers every three days, and insufficient food.
Among the detainees, there are an average of 700 to 800 Cubans, 70% of whom do not have final deportation orders, according to dossier data.
The center operates at a cost of over a million dollars a day, and in recent days, reports have emerged about possible discussions to shut it down due to its high expenses, although the Department of Homeland Security denied any pressure.
Peguero is competing in the Democratic primary on August 18, 2026, against Elliot Rodríguez and Lev Parnas, with the aim of facing Salazar in the general elections on November 3. When asked about his motivation for entering politics instead of working in the private sector, the candidate was straightforward: "My parents were veterans and chose to serve the public as members of the military. I have always, always said: I will serve the public."
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