Miami-Dade Mayor Says Protests ‘Had a Lot to Do With’ COVID-19 Surge in Florida

Miami-Dade Mayor Says Protests ‘Had a Lot to Do With’ COVID-19 Surge in Florida
Demonstrators participate in a protest in Miami, Florida, on June 12, 2020. Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Bill Pan
Updated:

Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez on Sunday cited the recent protests as one of the reasons his county continues to report new highs for COVID-19 cases.

During an interview on CBS' “Face the Nation,” Gimenez said that the county residents “let their guard down” in late May and early June, a period marked by the effort to reopen Florida’s economy, as well as the civil unrest following George Floyd’s death in the custody of Minneapolis police.