Miami Corruption Trial Gets a Marquee Witness: Marco Rubio
To much ado, the secretary of state took the stand against David Rivera, a former congressman accused of secretly lobbying on behalf of the Venezuelan government.
A war is raging in the Middle East. Washington is in talks with Havana. The United States remains heavily involved in Venezuela.
But Secretary of State Marco Rubio had to set all that aside on Tuesday morning. He had been called as a witness in a federal corruption trial in Miami, where he spent several hours testifying against an old friend.
The highly unusual turn for a sitting cabinet member created a stir in downtown Miami as Mr. Rubio prepared to take the stand against David Rivera, a former Republican congressman. Mr. Rubio’s testimony drew heightened security at the courthouse and a gaggle of news reporters eager to catch a glimpse of the secretary of state.
Despite the fact that his longtime friend and former Tallahassee housemate was testifying against him, Mr. Rivera seemed upbeat before going into court on Tuesday. “Let’s party,” he told members of the news media.
Federal prosecutors have accused Mr. Rivera of secretly lobbying on behalf of the Venezuelan government in 2017 and 2018. At the time, Mr. Rubio was a Republican senator from Florida. He has not been implicated in any wrongdoing.
According to prosecutors, Venezuela’s state-run oil company secretly hired Mr. Rivera’s consulting firm for $50 million to lobby members of Congress and the White House for a thaw in U.S.-Venezuela relations. Mr. Rivera and an associate, Esther Nuhfer, were charged in 2022 with conspiracy, failure to register as foreign agents and other crimes.
Prosecutors say that Mr. Rivera split the contract earnings, which amounted to about $20 million, with Ms. Nuhfer and two people who were not charged in the grand jury indictment. Mr. Rivera and Ms. Nuhfer have pleaded not guilty.
Their defense lawyers have argued that they did not need to register as foreign agents because their contract was with an American company — the U.S. subsidiary of the Venezuelan state-run oil company — and not with Venezuela.
Republican strategists have framed the losses as a natural regression following big gains in 2024 in Washington, D.C., and in state capitals across the country.
But Democrats see in the results a mounting anger in the electorate over Mr. Trump that could carry through November and the midterm elections. Ms. Gregory’s victory brought the trend into Mr. Trump’s backyard, in a state that has trended heavily Republican since its days as a perennial battleground.
“Floridians are tired of the chaos, corruption, and sky high prices on everything from groceries, to gas, and health care,” Nikki Fried, the chairwoman of the Florida Democratic Party, said in a statement. “They are voting for trusted leaders like Emily to steady the ship and return common sense, people-centered solutions back to our communities.”
A Democratic presidential candidate has not won Florida’s electoral votes since 2012, but this year, Florida has not been immune from the Democratic surge. Boca Raton, about 30 miles down the Atlantic coast from Palm Beach, elected its first Democratic mayor in 45 years earlier this month. That margin was narrow, but Miami voters in December overwhelmingly elected their first Democratic mayor in 30 years.
Palm Beach County, where Ms. Gregory scored her victory, used to be a Democratic stronghold, but Republicans have made major inroads in recent federal and local elections. The seat that Ms. Gregory won — District 87, along coastal Palm Beach County — had been held by State Representative Mike Caruso, a Republican, who won by 19 percentage points in 2024.
Mr. Caruso resigned in August after being appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis as county clerk, prompting Tuesday’s special election. Mr. Trump voted by mail in the race earlier this month, despite his ongoing national efforts to end vote by mail.
Ms. Gregory, 40, centered her campaign on the Democrats’ favorite word in the 2026 cycle, affordability, and zeroed in on housing and health care. She also highlighted her background as a mother of three, military spouse and small business owner.
Her opponent, Jon Maples, 43, a financial planner and former council member in Lake Clarke Shores, billed himself as a “conservative outsider” and “America First patriot.” Mr. Trump promoted his candidacy a few days ago at a Palm Beach Republican event, as Mr. Maples was facing a formal complaint that he did not live in the district.
In West Tampa, Mr. Nathan was trying to overcome a financial disadvantage and a lack of name recognition in his upset bid against former State Representative Josie Tomkow, a Republican, to fill a state senate seat vacated when Jay Collins, a Republican, was appointed lieutenant governor.
Republicans did win a special election Tuesday for a House seat to replace Ms. Tomkow, however, as Hilary Holley easily defeated Edwin Perez, a Democrat, to represent a district between Tampa and Orlando.
Beyond the symbolism, Ms. Gregory’s victory is not going to change the balance of power in a state legislature where Republicans hold a supermajority. Still, her term, which runs through the end of the year, promises to be eventful. Legislators still need to pass a budget before the July 1 deadline. Mr. DeSantis has also called for a special session in April to redraw Florida’s congressional map, in time for the 2026 midterms.
Ms. Gregory is expected to run again in the November general election for a full two-year term. A rematch against Mr. Maples is possible.
David W. Chen is a Times reporter focused on state legislatures, state level policymaking and the political forces behind them.
More on the 2026 Midterm Elections
Florida Special Election: Democrats flipped a Florida legislative district that includes President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, pulling off another upset in a state house election but this time one with obvious symbolic power.
R.N.C. Convention: Trump and the Republican National Committee are strongly considering Dallas as the site of an unusual midterm convention later this year, according to two people with knowledge of the discussions.
Thomas Massie: The Republican congressman from Kentucky is a die-hard libertarian who has centered his campaign on his willingness to buck President Trump. It has bought him the most expensive primary in the country.
Voting by Mail: The president has long fixated on mail-in voting to bolster his baseless claims of widespread voter fraud. But Trump recently used the method in a Florida special election. And the United States Postal Service service has consolidated and changed policies at some of its regional processing centers, which could lead to delays in postmarking and delivery of votes cast by mail.
Seizing Ballots in California: Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, a candidate for governor, recently took possession of more than 650,000 ballots as part of a fraud probe. Election officials say his investigation is baseless.
Affordability Message: Driven up by the war in Iran, higher gas prices have complicated the Republican message on affordability, while Democrats see an opportunity to sell their economic pitch. Trump’s health care cuts may have also given the Affordable Care Act new resonance.
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