Tag - Karen Civil

U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds defeated Democrat David Jolly on Tuesday to become Florida’s next governor, succeeding term-limited Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and extending the GOP’s hold on the state’s top office since 1998.⁠ ⁠ With an estimated 97% of votes counted as of 8:55 p.m. ET, Donalds held 50.0% (4,033,046 votes) to Jolly’s 48.8% (3,938,015). Libertarian Scott Jewett received 0.4%. CNN’s Decision Desk listed the race as favoring Donalds. His running mate, former state Sen. Bryan Avila of Miami-Dade County, will serve as lieutenant governor.⁠ ⁠ The victory makes Donalds the first Black governor in Florida history and the first Black Republican governor in the United States. Born in Brooklyn and of Jamaican and Panamanian descent, he was raised by a single mother, graduated from Florida State University with degrees in finance and marketing, and built a career in banking, insurance, and finance in Southwest Florida before entering politics. He served in the Florida House from 2016 to 2020, focusing on school choice and parental rights, then won election to Congress in 2020 representing Florida’s 19th District.⁠ ⁠ Donalds, endorsed by President Donald Trump and later by DeSantis, campaigned on continuing the outgoing administration’s policies while emphasizing affordability, school choice, law and order, property insurance reforms, and immigration enforcement. He won the August 18 Republican primary with about 47.8% of the vote.⁠ ⁠ Jolly, a former Republican U.S. representative from the Tampa Bay area who later became an independent and then a Democrat, conceded the race. Donalds is expected to take office in January 2027. The race was closely watched nationally as one of the most competitive gubernatorial contests of the midterms.⁠ ⁠ #lunionsuite #haitianamerican #haitian

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis just called out members of his own Republican Party in blunt terms.⁠ ⁠ In a clip that is now circulating widely, the two-term governor directly rejected the line some Republicans have been using on high gas prices. He said they are either telling people “don’t worry, it’s not a big deal” or still trying to blame former President Joe Biden. DeSantis called that approach dishonest.⁠ ⁠ “Some of these Republicans are saying, ‘Oh, well, the gas — don’t worry, it’s not a big deal,’ or they’re trying to blame Biden. No, no, no,” DeSantis said. “Listen, we just gotta be honest. Gas is higher. It hurts people, working-class people. And it’s higher because of this conflict. That’s just a fact. If you can’t admit that to voters, then you’re gaslighting them, and they’re not gonna listen to you on other things.”⁠ ⁠ The comments came during an interview with Stephen A. Smith and echoed remarks DeSantis made over the weekend while campaigning for Florida Attorney General candidate James Uthmeier near Mar-a-Lago. The timing is notable: it landed on the eve of the 2026 midterm elections, as Republicans face voter frustration over the cost of living.⁠ ⁠ The conflict DeSantis is referring to is the ongoing U.S. and Israeli military campaign against Iran that began in late February 2026. National average gas prices have climbed sharply since the war started, from roughly $2.98 per gallon beforehand to about $4.15 now, according to AAA data. Florida’s average has also risen significantly.⁠ ⁠ DeSantis has pointed out that the operation has not been a short, contained action. He has contrasted it with quicker operations elsewhere and noted that an open-ended Middle East conflict is hitting working families directly every time they fill up.⁠ ⁠ It’s election day! - Did you vote? 🗳️ #lunionsuite #haitianamerican #haitian

Today is ELECTION DAY!! Please go vote!!!!!!! 🗳️ #lunionsuite #haitianamerican #govote #electionday

Haitian-American mental health counselor Wilnie Louis entered the Love Is Blind Season 11 pods looking for love and a partner who would embrace her close-knit family and Haitian traditions. The 33-year-old from the Boston area, the youngest of three siblings, quickly connected with Wilson Monteiro, a senior compliance manager. The pair got engaged in the pods after another woman Wilson had been speaking with, Malaine Thorpe, exited the experiment early. What began as a promising story has grown more complicated on screen. As the season has progressed, viewers have watched tension build between Wilnie and Wilson outside the pods. In Mexico and back in Boston, the couple navigated lingering questions from the love triangle, differences in how they express affection, and practical discussions about household roles and expectations. Wilson has described Wilnie as having “more personality” in the pods and said she now has a “helpless attitude” toward certain things, comments he made in front of her friends and sister. Wilnie has pushed back, noting she had previously shared how spoiled she is by her family and friends. In later episodes, she told Wilson she does not feel she is receiving enough affection or nurturing and that she feels pressure around traditional roles while also working. When he asked if she was getting everything she needed to feel 100% happy, she answered no. A few days ago, Wilnie addressed the experience directly on Instagram. She wrote: “Going on Love Is Blind to find love, only for my entire edit to be about how unlovable I am 😕.” Her comment highlights a familiar reality-TV frustration. Contestants often see only fragments of their real conversations and personalities make it to air, and the resulting narrative can feel far removed from their intentions or the full picture. It appears the show portrayal of her has focused heavily on the insecurities and relationship friction that developed after the pods rather than the full range of who she is. Despite the challenges, Wilnie and Wilson have remained together heading into the final episodes. 🎥 @wilnie_ @loveisblindnetflix @theviallfiles @refinery29 #lunionsuite #haitianamerican

Heavy, persistent rainfall triggered widespread flooding across Florida’s east coast and parts of South Florida on Monday and Tuesday, November 2–3,, forcing road closures, school shutdowns, water rescues, and temporary changes to Election Day polling locations.⁠ ⁠ The most extreme rainfall hit Brevard County on the Space Coast. Preliminary National Weather Service reports showed more than 20 inches in areas around Malabar, Grant-Valkaria, and Palm Bay, with one gauge recording 24.1 inches over roughly 36 hours. ⁠ ⁠ The flooding extended southward into the Treasure Coast and South Florida. Palm Beach County saw high totals, including reports exceeding 20 inches in some West Palm Beach-area locations. In Broward County, Doppler estimates and local reports showed 5–9 inches in places such as Sunrise, Weston, and Davie, producing knee-deep water near Amerant Bank Arena and standing water on streets and in low-lying neighborhoods. St. Bonaventure Catholic School in Davie closed due to flooding; public schools in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach were already closed for Election Day teacher planning days. Coastal Flood Advisories and Flood Watches remained in effect across much of South Florida into Tuesday.⁠ ⁠ Gov. Ron DeSantis issued Executive Order 26-227 declaring a state of emergency in seven counties: Brevard, DeSoto, Hardee, Highlands, Indian River, Martin, and St. Lucie. The order facilitates state resources for response and recovery and includes provisions allowing supervisors of elections to relocate polling places made inaccessible by flooding. Multiple counties reported precinct moves.⁠ ⁠ Meteorologists attributed the rain to an upper-level low over the eastern Gulf drawing deep tropical moisture, combined with persistent easterly onshore flow from the Atlantic. Slow-moving, “training” storms repeatedly dumped heavy rain over the same areas, overwhelming drainage systems already saturated from recent king tides and earlier rains.⁠ ⁠ Officials continue to urge residents to avoid driving through flooded roads and to check local election sites and emergency updates before heading out.⁠ ⁠ #lunionsuite #haitianamerican #haitian

A family of four, including two young children, were among those killed when a Learjet slammed into a Florida roadway, according to a relative. All nine people aboard the Bahamas-bound aircraft, two crew members and seven passengers, were killed in Sunday’s catastrophic crash in Palm Beach County, authorities said. The Learjet 60, registration N722BD, had departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas on the morning of November 1, 2026, bound for North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas. Around 12:50 p.m. ET, it plunged nose-first into Military Trail near Cresthaven Boulevard, exploding into a fireball, leaving a crater, and scattering debris across a residential neighborhood. One person on the ground suffered a minor leg injury. Hundreds of nearby residents, including those in a mobile home community, were displaced. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating. Crew reports of icing, moderate turbulence, and extreme cold temperatures shortly before the crash are a focus, along with evidence of possible in-flight breakup and a rapid high-speed descent of roughly 27,000 feet in about one minute. Families issued a joint statement identifying the seven passengers: - Adam Robinson, 45, an Austin-based tech entrepreneur. - Helen Sharp, 40, his wife, a public relations professional. - Their children, Emma, 4, and Charlie, 2. - Anita Maria Cetina, the children’s nanny and caretaker. - Rachael Reed and Charmi Fehr, friends of the family. The crew members were: - Captain Jeffrey Gregory, 55. - Co-pilot Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras, 20, of the Boca Raton. A graduate of West Boca Raton High School’s Aviation and Aerospace Academy, she earned her private pilot’s license at 17, before her driver’s license. She was working professionally as a pilot and was heard on the radio during the final moments. Officials have not yet released a formal identification of remains, citing the need for DNA confirmation amid the severity of the impact, but family statements and multiple reports have named all nine. The crash is the deadliest involving a Learjet 60 and one of the deadliest U.S. aviation accidents of 2026. #lunionsuite #haitianamerican

Today is Election Day across the United States, and millions of Americans have the opportunity to make their voices heard at the polls.⁠ ⁠ From Congress to state and local offices, voters are making decisions that will help shape the future of their communities. These elections affect issues many families deal with every day, including education, housing, healthcare, public safety, and the cost of living.⁠ ⁠ For Haitian Americans and the broader Caribbean community, participating in elections is another way to make sure our voices and concerns are represented.⁠ ⁠ If you're registered and eligible to vote, make a plan to get to your polling location today. Check your voting location, review what's on your ballot, and remember that polling hours vary by state.⁠ ⁠ Your voice matters. Your vote matters. Go vote! 🗳️🇺🇸⁠ ⁠ If you've already voted, encourage a friend or family member to do the same.⁠ ⁠ #lunionsuite #haitianamerican #electionday #govote

While we don’t typically engage in or amplify what social media has labeled the “Diaspora Wars,” some moments ask for a conversation that goes beyond the arguments, comparisons, and divisions that often dominate these spaces. A recent video tied to a vigil for 15-year-old Javits Frimpong, a Ghanaian teenager who was fatally shot while walking to school in the Bronx on October 29, has sparked discussion. In the days after his death, members of New York’s Ghanaian community, along with family, neighbors, and religious leaders, gathered to mourn and call for justice. A clip circulating online captures a woman insists the moment is for Africans only. A man, identified as a Haitian American community leader, pushes back, arguing that the death of a child should be a moment for all Black people to come together. He emphasizes that the response should transcend national or ethnic lines because the violence itself does not. According to those familiar with his work, he shows up for communities regardless of whether the victim is African, Black American, Jamaican, or otherwise. The point we believe he is making is that the fragmentation we often insist on, separating ourselves by country, culture, or ethnicity does not protect us. In the face of a child being shot, those distinctions become secondary to the fact that we are all Black people living with the same threat. As Haitians and members of the broader Caribbean diaspora, we understand the importance of cultural pride, identity, and standing firmly for our own communities. We also recognize the weight of collective grief and the value of respecting how communities process loss and show up for their own. Social media makes it easy for a single encounter to be treated as a statement about entire groups of people. How do we hold space for our respective identities and histories without letting differences overshadow the experiences that connect us. Our intention in sharing this is not to encourage division or set one community against another. It’s to create room for honest dialogue, different perspectives. Please keep the discussion respectful. Sources: @Dalourny | Mssjordanofficial #lunionsuite #haitianamerican

Former President of the Chamber of Deputies Gary Bodeau officially submitted his presidential candidacy documents on Thursday, October 29, to the Bureau Électoral Départemental (BED) Ouest 1 in the Pétion-Ville area (Route de Frères). He is running under the banner of the political platform REKONSILYE.⁠ ⁠ Bodeau, a former deputy for Delmas who previously served as President of the Chamber of Deputies, was accompanied by several other candidates from the platform, including Senator René Armstrong and artist Atros (Steevenson Telfort), who is seeking a Senate seat in the Ouest department. Dozens of supporters, including rara bands, accompanied him.⁠ ⁠ Speaking after the filing, Bodeau denounced what he described as a transition that has dragged on endlessly since the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in July 2021. He stressed the need for Haiti to move beyond successive transitional periods and restore institutions through credible elections. His team had been preparing for a first-round vote in the first quarter of 2027. The Provisional Electoral Council (CEP) published an updated calendar on October 28 setting the first round of the presidential and legislative elections for July 18, 2027, with the second round and local elections scheduled for October 4, 2027.⁠ ⁠ On policy, Bodeau is centering his platform on security, job creation, and decentralization. He argues for redistributing economic and administrative activity away from the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, including a proposal for two capitals and greater investment in the Grand Nord—particularly the economic and tourism potential of Môle-Saint-Nicolas and Île de la Tortue. He has also previously floated the idea of shifting significant capital functions toward the Nord-Ouest department.⁠ ⁠ REKONSILYE, which groups several parties and organizations (including elements of KID, MUR, KAD AYITI, and others), selected Bodeau as its presidential candidate in mid-September after an internal vote. He had already registered online with the CEP in September. Bodeau’s candidacy comes amid a crowded field of more than 20 registered presidential aspirants. ⁠ ⁠ #lunionsuite #haitianamerican #haitian

For the first time, Haiti’s government has allocated 50 million gourdes (approximately $382,000 USD at current exchange rates) to the Vodou sector as part of the national budget adopted on September 30. The announcement was made on Wednesday, October 28, by Minister of Foreign Affairs and Religious Affairs Raina Forbin during a meeting in Port-au-Prince with Vodou leaders.⁠ ⁠ According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Religious Affairs, the allocation places the Vodou sector on the same footing as other religious denominations recognized in Haiti. The funds, approved by the Council of Ministers under the leadership of Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, are intended to support collective-interest initiatives that benefit the sector.⁠ ⁠ The meeting focused on the modalities for using the support fund and on strengthening dialogue between the state and representatives of the Vodou community. Forbin also welcomed the recent swearing-in of twelve houngans and mambos before the Court of First Instance of Port-au-Prince. She described the step as important progress in the implementation of the presidential decree of April 4, 2003, which recognized Vodou as a religion in its own right.⁠ ⁠ The minister further announced that the national Ati is now among the individuals eligible for certain state protocol privileges, including access to a diplomatic passport, in accordance with the decree of June 2, 2026.⁠ ⁠ Vodou leaders expressed satisfaction with the advances and welcomed Forbin’s engagement in dialogue with the sector. They also shared concerns and proposals aimed at better structuring the community. Participants agreed to hold a follow-up consultation meeting.⁠ ⁠ Forbin reaffirmed the government’s commitment, under Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aimé, to strengthen dialogue with religious leaders across the country and to ensure Vodou receives the same consideration as other state-recognized faiths. The ministry framed the measures in terms of institutional equity, mutual respect, and the valorization of Haiti’s cultural and spiritual heritage.⁠ ⁠ #lunionsuite #haitianamerican #haitian

All nine people aboard a private Learjet 60 were killed Sunday afternoon when the Bahamas-bound aircraft nosedived into a residential area near Greenacres in Palm Beach County, Florida, and erupted in a fireball, narrowly missing homes and a busy roadway.⁠ ⁠ The crash occurred around 12:50 p.m. near Military Trail according to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Aviation Administration. The aircraft had departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas and was en route to North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas.⁠ ⁠ Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed the deaths and described the incident as a “horrific tragedy.” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, speaking near the scene, called it “cataclysmic,” saying, “It looked like a missile going down and left a big crater on the side of the road.” Officials said there were no reports of injuries or deaths on the ground, though debris was scattered over a significant distance. Roughly 600 residents of a nearby mobile home community were evacuated because the crash site blocked access.⁠ ⁠ Air traffic control recordings captured the crew’s final moments. Minutes before the crash, the pilot reported light clear ice, moderate turbulence, and precipitation while requesting a climb. The crew then declared a mayday, reporting a rapid descent of 10,000 feet per minute that escalated to 20,000 feet per minute in an overspeed condition. “We’re going to crash into the ground,” the pilot radioed. Flight tracking data showed the jet descending roughly 27,000 feet in about one minute before impact. The area was under a flood watch amid heavy rain and thunderstorms, with a convective SIGMET in effect.⁠ ⁠ Military Trail remains closed. The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation, with FAA support; investigators were expected on scene Sunday night and Monday. Officials have not released the names of those on board or the breakdown of passengers and crew. The crash is the second-deadliest in the United States this year, following a June skydiving plane crash in Butler, Missouri, that killed 12, according to NTSB records.⁠ ⁠ 🎥 @WSVN @FoxLocal⁠ #lunionsuite #thehaitianamerican

President Donald Trump publicly confirmed he has spoken with El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele about the situation in Haiti, telling the Salvadoran leader to handle the crisis as he sees fit. Speaking to reporters at a Halloween gathering at Mar-a-Lago on October 31, Trump said Bukele described having “a big problem with Haiti” and that “they killed some of his people.” Trump responded: “You’re running your country. You have to do what you have to do.”⁠ ⁠ Bukele later confirmed the exchange on X with a simple “Can confirm.” in reply to a White House Rapid Response post of the clip. Trump also stated that Bukele “doesn’t need help” and is “in pretty good shape,” signaling no immediate U.S. military involvement.⁠ ⁠ The comments come as El Salvador has rapidly deployed more than 2,000 troops to Haiti following the October 18 ambush of four Salvadoran aviation technicians serving with the UN-authorized Gang Suppression Force (GSF). The men were returning from a supermarket in the gang-controlled Croix-des-Bouquets area near Port-au-Prince when their armored vehicle was attacked with gunfire and explosives. They escaped the burning vehicle but remain missing. No gang has claimed responsibility, and official statements continue to treat them as unaccounted for rather than confirmed dead.⁠ ⁠ Bukele has framed the operation as a rescue mission and an effort to “teach the gangs a lesson,” while insisting it is not an invasion or an action against the Haitian people. In messages posted in Kreyol, he stated that El Salvador has no interest in dominating Haiti or seizing its resources, that the country is covering roughly 90% of the costs, and that the troops will return once the mission is complete. ⁠ ⁠ The deployment has drawn scrutiny. A Haitian diaspora advocacy group has alleged civilian casualties and airstrikes in areas near Port-au-Prince; Bukele has denied the claims, noting that Salvadoran attack helicopters only arrived later and that the mission does not involve bombs. The situation remains fluid, with search operations ongoing and questions about the scale and duration of El Salvador’s presence still unanswered.⁠ ⁠ #lunionsuite #haitianamerican #haitian