Democrats work to boost Rivera challenger

In an apparent effort to boost the visibility of a low-profile contender going after a potentially vulnerable incumbent, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee on Tuesday added Gloria Romero Roses to its list of “emerging races” that could help the party regain control of the U.S. House.

Roses is a relatively unknown candidate running against Republican Congressman David Rivera in a Miami-area district that the incumbent captured in the GOP tsunami of 2010.

Before Tuesday’s announcement, some observers were surprised that Democrats had not been able to lure a more popular name into the contest.

“Because of some of the problems that he’s had … you would think he would be a lot more vulnerable,” said Aubrey Jewett, a political science professor at the University of Central Florida.

But Steve Schale, a Democratic campaign consultant, said Roses was worth being placed on the emerging races list. He said that if she does well in fundraising and puts together a solid organization, she could build up the name recognition necessary to topple Rivera.

“Candidate quality is not measured by how well people in Tallahassee know who you are,” he said.

And he said the demographics of the district and Rivera’s well-publicized problems were still enough to make it likely that the race will be competitive in November.

“At this point, there’s really no reason to think it won’t be,” Schale said.

Naple News recently wrote a story featuring Political Science professor Aubrey Jewett. Read the entire story here.