Elián and his dad went back to Cuba in June 2000, just four months before the US Presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore. Miami Cubans, hurt and angered by President Bill Clinton’s handling of the Elián case, resolved to vote against the Democrats and for the Republicans in what was called el voto castigo — the punishment vote.

To understand the political influence of Cuban-Americans, the stakes, and lasting impact of this moment, producer Tasha Sandoval takes the mic. We meet Tasha’s grandmother, an 87-year-old Miami Cuban, and learn how her story as a first wave Cuban exile informs her perspective.

This season's cover art by Ranfis Suárez Ramos.

Thanks to These Archival Sources:

Lynn and Louis Wolfson II Florida Moving Image Archives

Original Material Appeared In:

ABC News

AP Archive

CBS News

CNN Evening News

C-SPAN

Democracy Now!

HBO's "537 Votes"

Museum of the Moving Image

National Archives

NBC Evening News

NBC News

PBS NewsHour

Retro Report

The New York Times

Voice of America

YouTube/Plopsmom

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