The Estefans' support boosts the party’s prospects in Florida. | Reuters and AP Photos | Composite image by POLITICO Obama courts anti-Castro stars

MIAMI BEACH — President Barack Obama raked in millions for the Democratic National Committee during a stop here Thursday, but the real prize is an unprecedented endorsement from two of the most influential ambassadors to a critical Florida voting bloc.

Obama’s appearance Thursday on the elite Star Island makes him the first politician — Democrat or Republican — to tap into this Miami money machine, as he headlined a fundraiser at the waterfront home of Cuban-born singer Gloria Estefan and her producer husband, Emilio.


The Estefans have had the ear of presidents for decades. They’ve talked U.S.-Cuba relations with both Republican and Democratic administrations. But despite open invitations from both sides of the aisle, the couple has never before raised money for either political party.

Their decision to do so for Obama is a sign of how fluid the politics of South Florida’s traditionally Republican Cuban-American voters has become.

“Emilio and Gloria are among the most respected and successful members of the Cuban-American community,” said Freddy Balsera, a Miami-based Democratic consultant who advised the Obama campaign and is close to the Estefans. “Having the president in their house sends a lot of important symbolic messages to the Cuban-American community and to the Hispanic community in general.”

While Cuban-American voters have historically taken a hard line on U.S.-Cuba relations and supported the GOP for four decades, a younger generation and newer exiles have been leaning more Democratic.

Obama tried to capitalize on this trend during the campaign. He promised to ease the U.S. embargo on Cuba, one of the last edifices of the Cold War that was hardened under President George W. Bush. And as president, Obama has begun to enact softer Cuba policies, such as increasing travel and remittances to the island.

Fernand Amandi, executive vice president of the Miami-based polling firm Bendixen & Amandi, said the Estefans’ decision reflects a continuing political shift in South Florida.

“This underscores the idea that the Cuban-American community is no longer a monolithic voting bloc,” Amandi said. “You can now have a Democratic president come into the home of the most influential, high-profile Cuban-American couple in Miami.”

The result, Amandi suggested, is that other Cuban Americans might say if the Estefans can openly support Obama, they can as well. They are by far the best-known Cuban-Americans to endorse a Democrat.

The Estefans, who came to fame as members of the 1980s group Miami Sound Machine and have since built a business empire that includes a string of Cuban-themed restaurants and a small share of the Miami Dolphins, are expected to use the event as an opportunity to press Obama on the Cuba issue.

The children of Cuban exiles, they have long been active in causes for the island nation. More recently, they’ve stepped up their involvement. Gloria Estefan led a demonstration in Miami’s Little Havana neighborhood in protest of the Cuban government’s treatment of dissidents. Obama also released a sharply worded statement on the issue about the same time.

Gloria Estefan spoke mostly about Cuba in her welcoming remarks at the fundraiser, according to a release from her spokesman, and she said her father, a Cuban exile who fled after Fidel Castro came to power, would have been proud she was hosting Obama.

Estefan also pointed out that the fundraiser comes just 21 days after Obama issued a statement saying: "Today, I join my voice with brave individuals across Cuba and a growing chorus around the world in calling for an end to the repression, for the immediate release of all political prisoners in Cuba and for respect for the basic rights of the Cuban people."

“The Estefans are at a point in their life where patriotism matters a lot to them,” Balsera said.

The DNC, with the help of Balsera, asked the Estefans to host the $30,400-per-couple event. After thinking about it for a day or so, they agreed.

Their decision fueled the ongoing political debate in South Florida and opened the Estefans up to criticism, something they’ve avoided over the years by refusing to support either party.

“Historically, Emilio and Gloria have stayed away from partisan politics. They have maintained a certain independence,” said Jose Azel, a senior research associate at the Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies at the University of Miami. “This is really unusual for them.”

The Estefans have had relationships with President Bill Clinton, as well as President George W. Bush and his father, President George H.W. Bush. Emilio Estefan has produced dozens of events at the White House under at least four presidents.

During the 2008 campaign, Gloria Estefan didn’t play much of a role in supporting Obama, and Emilio never technically endorsed him.

But he did offer advice to the campaign on reaching out to Hispanics, speaking with some key players almost daily. He also attended the last presidential debate at Hofstra University and gave interviews afterward. And if he felt Miami conservative radio hosts went too far in their criticism of Obama, he would call them and ask them to cut it out.

Since Obama took office, the couple has been at the White House for meetings and events. Gloria Estefan interviewed the president for a televised Christmas special on Univision.

She was also a star performer at Obama’s Fiesta Latina event last fall. And Obama also named Emilio Estefan to a panel that will look into creating a National Museum of the American Latino.

The couple’s decision to host Obama has won them some praise in Miami, but it has also stirred a fair share of controversy.

“The Estefans may have broken more than a rule when they decided to host a cocktail reception for the president during his visit to South Florida on Thursday,” a Miami Herald columnist wrote. “Estefan, along with husband Emilio, also broke a bond that had united them with Miami’s Cuban community, whose members largely oppose the president’s agenda.”

Obama’s job approval rating tends to be split among voters in Florida, much as it is nationally, but he consistently gets more positive ratings among Hispanic voters in the state, said David Beattie, a Florida political consultant.

When it comes to the administration’s Cuba policy, Azel said, supporters and opponents agree that it has not been effective.

“I don’t think there’s any division in the sense that they have not worked,” he said. “There have been zero concessions. ... The Obama administration moved a piece on the chess board; the Cuban government has not.”

The timing of the Estefans’ endorsement of Obama and the Democratic Party couldn’t be better for Florida Democrats. Republicans are enjoying momentum in the state heading into the midterm elections. The GOP is favored in the gubernatorial race and in the Senate contest. Marco Rubio, a Cuban-American from Miami, is leading in the Republican Senate primary.

While he won’t have any public events in Miami, Obama’s remarks at a larger fundraiser of about 800 people at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, where ticket prices will range from $250 to $1,250, will be open to the media.

The fundraiser at the Estefans is closed and expected to be smaller, about 100 people.

Overall, his visit is seen as important step in continuing to reach out to Hispanic voters in the state.

Democrats hope having the Estefans in their camp will help their party this November and Obama in 2012.

“It’s incredibly meaningful for the Democratic Party and for the president,” Balsera said. “He’s going to continue to need strong Hispanic support in the state if he’s going to win reelection.”