Carlos Curbelo Doing the Pre-Season I’m-Running Dance to Challenge Democrat Congressman Garcia

Miami-Dade County School Board member Carlos Curbelo has not officially entered the race to challenge Democratic U.S. Rep. Joe Garcia — but the Miami Republican is enlisting some of the state’s most prominent members of the GOP for his exploratory committee.

Over the weekend, the Curbelo team released the names of the Republicans who will be helping their candidate raise funds and other financial matters. The list of Curbelo supporters includes former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux, former Florida House Speaker Dean Cannon and prominent attorney, Republican activist and new media figure Justin Sayfie. Some of the Republicans supporting Curbelo, including Sayfie, have ties to former Gov. Jeb Bush.

“I thank each of these civic and business leaders for their commitment to our efforts,” Curbelo said in a statement. “I believe the people of Congressional District 26 deserve effective representation in Washington that makes education a national priority, promotes responsible economic growth, and fights for accountability and integrity in government. I grew up in southwest Dade. My wife and I are raising our daughters here, and I have been honored to represent its residents since 2010 on the School Board. I look forward to continuing this conversation with our community.”