Miami, FL
‘Don’t sleep on Florida’: Miami-Dade Democrats make the case that Florida is in play
Miami-Dade Democrats sought to move past months of infighting and internal drama on Saturday at their annual Blue Gala in Miami Beach.
Bringing in the top brass of the Miami-Dade, state and national parties, the gala was framed as a pep rally for Democrats, who are hoping to head off a possible electoral drubbing in Florida in November. Democrats need to run up big margins in Miami-Dade in order to have a shot at winning both the presidency and statewide office, but that has proved increasingly difficult in recent years, most notably in 2022, when both Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio won the county.
With just over six weeks to go before Election Day, party leaders on Saturday rallied around the hope that the electoral rout they suffered two years ago was an anomaly born out of internal dysfunction and low voter turnout. This year, they vowed, will be different.
“Don’t sleep on Florida,” Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison said before a packed ballroom at the Miami Beach Convention Center. “Something special is going on in this state right now…and I think it’s going to shock the world. I think it’s going to shock the nation. And I know it’s going to give Republicans a shock.”
In a brief interview with the Miami Herald on Saturday night, Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Nikki Fried said that the Blue Gala represented “the rebuilding of the Miami-Dade” Democratic Party after a rough stretch earlier this year.
Florida Democratic Party leaders forcibly removed the Miami-Dade party’s chairman, Robert Dempster, in March after Fried suspended him for what she argued were repeated violations of the state party’s rules and bylaws. That kicked off a heated and divisive race to succeed Dempster as the head of the Miami-Dade party – a job that eventually went to state Sen. Shevrin Jones.
Fried, a Miami native, said that the county party is experiencing a resurgence.
“You see a sold-out crowd, you have the chairman of the DNC who’s here as our keynote speaker,” Fried said. “You have [elected officials] that are here, leaning back into the local party, understanding that we can do all of this great work across the rest of the state, but if Miami-Dade doesn’t produce the numbers and show once again that Miami is a stronghold for Democrats, it doesn’t matter what happens in the rest of the state.”
Fried noted that things are looking up for Democrats in Miami-Dade, pointing to County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava’s reelection win last month as a sign that Democratic voters were willing to turn out this year.
Democrats are also hoping that a pair of proposed constitutional amendments that will appear on the ballot in November — one that would legalize recreational marijuana and another that would enshrine broad protections for abortion rights into state law — will help boost turnout among Democratic voters.
Yet there are still significant challenges. Statewide, there are now nearly one million more active registered Republican voters in Democrats, and Republicans are increasingly bullish about the notion that former President Donald Trump could pick up Miami-Dade County in the November presidential election.
Taking the stage Saturday night, Jones, the Miami-Dade Democratic Party chairman, acknowledged the divisions that had beset the party, but insisted that Vice President Kamala Harris’ path to the “White House runs through” Miami-Dade. He said it was incumbent upon Democrats to “build bridges” within the party and put their differences aside.
“While we didn’t see eye to eye on all things, we all had one common goal, and that was to get the damn job done,” Jones said. “The Miami-Dade Democratic Party is back and we are not going back and we will win in November.”
Miami, FL
Miami Heat-Minnesota Timberwolves Final Injury Update: Anthony Edwards’ status divulged
The Minnesota Timberwolves announced that guard Anthony Edwards is now available to play in Tuesday night’s game against the Miami Heat after originally being listed as questionable with right foot injury maintenance.
Here’s the rest of the injury report and game preview:
INJURY REPORT
HEAT
Tyler Herro: Available – Toe
Jaime Jaquez Jr.: Out – Ankle
Nikola Jovic: Available – Groin
Terry Rozier: Out – Not with team
TIMBERWOLVES
Anthony Edwards: Available – Foot
Terrence Shannon Jr.: Out – Foot
Joan Beringer: Out – G League
Game date, time and location: Tuesday, Jan. 6, 8:00 p.m. EST, Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota
TV: TV: Peacock,
Radio: 104.3 FM (Miami/Ft. Lauderdale), ESPN 106.3 FM, (West Palm Beach), FOX Sports Radio 105.9 FM (Ft. Myers/Naples), 1450 AM (Suart), 97.7 FM (Florida Keys), WAQI 710 AM (Spanish-language broadcast, South Florida) 100.3 FM (Minnesota)
VITALS: The Miami Heat (20-16) and Minnesota Timberwolves (23-13) meet for the second and final regular season matchup after just facing off three days ago with Minnesota recording a, 125-115, win in Miami on January 3. The teams split the series, 1-1, last season with each squad winning on the road. The Heat are 36-35 all-time versus Minnesota during the regular season,
including 19-16 in home games and 17-19 in road games.
PROJECTED STARTERS
HEAT
G Davion Mitchell
G Tyler Herro
C Bam Adebayo
F Norman Powell
F Andrew Wiggins
TIMBERWOLVES
G Donte DiVincenzo
G Anthony Edwards
C Rudy Gobert
F Jaden McDaniels
F Julius Randle
Spread: Heat +5.5 (-112), Timberwolves -5.5 (-108)
Moneyline: Heat +166, Timberwolves -198
Total points scored: 239.5 (over -106, under -114)
QUOTABLE
Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra on the forced turnovers: “That is and has to be our identity. We have to play with a recklessness and activity level that exceeds our opponent, and thats not to put down our talent level or anything like that, it’s more about we look different when we’re flying around and making plays and making it tough for the opponent.”
For more Miami Heat information and conversation, check out Off The Floor.
Alexander Toledo is a contributor to Miami Heat On SI and producer/co-host of the Five on the Floor podcast, covering the Heat and NBA. He can be reached at Twitter: @tropicalblanket
Miami, FL
Man shot during $22,000 gold chain robbery at Supreme store in Miami’s Design District; Atlanta suspects arrested
Three men were arrested Saturday after a robbery inside a Miami clothing store left a man shot and hospitalized, according to Miami police and arrest affidavits.
The incident happened Friday afternoon in Miami’s popular Design District neighborhood.
Police said officers were dispatched around 4:20 p.m. Friday to the area of Miami Avenue and Northeast 41st Street after receiving reports of a man who had been shot. Officers found the victim, who told them he had been robbed and shot while shopping inside a Supreme store located at 45 NE 41st Street.
According to investigators, the victim said he was approached by three suspects inside the store, including one person with whom he had a prior conflict originating from the Atlanta area. Police said an argument broke out, and one suspect forcibly removed a gold chain from the victim’s neck. The chain was valued at approximately $22,000, according to police.
As the suspect ran out of the store, the victim attempted to chase him, police said. During the pursuit, an unidentified male shot the victim once in the stomach. The suspects then fled the area in a white Mercedes-Benz, according to the arrest affidavits.
Miami Police detectives later located the suspect vehicle parked near Northeast 10th Avenue and Northeast 91st Terrace. Police said they conducted surveillance and observed the suspects abandon the vehicle and walk through a nearby residential area before entering a home in the 800 block of Northeast 90th Street.
A residential search warrant was executed, resulting in the arrest of three suspects. During the search, detectives recovered the victim’s gold chain, keys to the suspect vehicle, and clothing believed to have been worn during the robbery, police said.
The suspects were identified as Jamar McKay, 25, Omarion Phillips, 20, and Kevieon Smith, 21. McKay was charged with armed robbery with a firearm or deadly weapon. Phillips and Smith were charged as accessories after the fact, with Smith also facing an additional firearms-related charge, according to court records.
“This arrest sends a clear message: violent crime will not be tolerated in the City of Miami,” Miami Police Chief Manuel Morales said in a statement. “Individuals who commit acts of violence in our city will be identified, located, and held fully accountable.”
Miami, FL
Miami Hurricanes arrive in Phoenix to continue Fiesta Bowl preparations
Miami Hurricanes arrive in Phoenix
Miami Hurricanes arrive in Phoenix on Jan. 5, 2026, ahead of their matchup with the Ole Miss Rebels at the 2026 Vrbo Fiesta Bowl.
The Miami Hurricanes are looking to buck a bad trend. They’re 0-4 in the Fiesta Bowl.
Coach Mario Cristobal’s team gets its fifth shot this week as Miami (12-2) squares off against Mississippi (13-1) in the Fiesta Bowl at 5:30 p.m. on Jan. 8 at State Farm Stadium. The school may be 0-4 historically, but there is plenty at stake. This Fiesta Bowl is serving as a College Football Playoff semifinal.
The Hurricanes, the No. 10 seed in the 12-team playoff field, arrived at 5 p.m. Monday, Jan. 5, at the Ragsdale Executive Terminal of Sky Harbor Airport. The opposing team is expected 24 hours later.
The gathered crowd of 100 or so was made of members of the Fiesta Bowl Committee, easily identifiable in their yellow jackets, and their families.
In the past, there had been a welcome event in a tent adjacent to the runway. The coach typically made an opening statement, but players and coaches walked off the plane and straight to their buses parked nearby.
Players, dressed in white sweatsuits, filed off their American Airlines flight in single file on a blue carpet.
The players will take part in a media day on Jan. 6 at a Scottsdale hotel, with the coaches talking to the media the following day, the eve of the contest.
The Hurricanes enter on the heels of a six-game winning streak. Their last loss came on Nov. 1 against SMU, a game decided in double overtime 26-20. They have surrendered just 17 points in their two postseason games.
The winner advances to the national championship game on Jan. 19 against the winner of the other semifinal, the Peach Bowl between Oregon and Indiana.
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