Luther Campbell Explains His Endorsement of Julio Robaina

No surprise, blogs backing Carlos Gimenez attacked Luther Campbell for going with Julio Robaina in the Miami-Dade mayoral run-off on June 28. Even the Miami Herald, which has also endorsed Gimenez, took issue with Campbell's shocking unexpected backing of Robaina, whom he dubbed "Hialeah's overlord" in the pages of this...

By Francisco Alvarado

June 13, 2011

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No surprise, blogs backing Carlos Gimenez attacked Luther Campbell for going with Julio Robaina in the Miami-Dade mayoral run-off on June 28. Even the Miami Herald, which has also endorsed Gimenez, took issue with Campbell's shocking unexpected backing of Robaina, whom he dubbed "Hialeah's overlord" in the pages of this newspaper. The sub-hed for the June 10 story reads: "After dithering for two days, former rap star Luther Campbell endorsed Julio Robaina for mayor."

Gimenez got his shot in too, telling the Herald: "Mr. Campbell and I had a frank discussion and agreed we were on the same page as to creating jobs and making community redevelopment agencies accountable to the communities they serve. However, I was not willing to do certain things that Mr. Campbell was asking."

During an interview at New Times HQ with Editor Chuck Strouse and other members of the paper's staff, Campbell shed light into how he was lobbied by both candidates and how he settled on Robaina knowing he would face scathing criticism for endorsing a man he called a "big, fat liar."

You can view the rest of the interview by clicking below:

Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6

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Francisco Alvarado was born in Nicaragua and grew up in Miami, giving him unique insight into the Magic City and all its dark corners. An investigative reporter with a knack for uncovering corruption, Alvarado made his bones as a staff writer at Miami New Times and remains in dogged pursuit of the next juicy story.

Contact: Francisco Alvarado

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Twitter: @thefrankness