MIAMI — Kenneth J. DeSantis, an attorney who is not related to Gov. Ron DeSantis, is among the 13 candidates running for Miami mayor on Nov. 4.
The University of Richmond School of Law graduate was admitted to the Florida Bar in 2022. He is set to serve as a member of the Aviation Law Committee until 2030.
DeSantis, who lives in Miami near Coral Gables and has no party affiliation, is an associate for the Cole, Scott & Kissane law firm in Kendall’s Dadeland area.
DeSantis, who also earned a bachelor’s degree from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, attended the University of Cambridge, according to his biography.
Related link: Campaign page
Related document: Affidavit of candidate (.PDF)
OTHER MAYORAL CANDIDATES
The other candidates in the nonpartisan race are Alex Díaz de la Portilla, Alyssa Crocker, Christian E. Cevallos, Miami-Dade Commissioner Eileen Higgins, Elijah John Bowdre, Emilio González, Miami Commissioner Joe Carollo, June Savage, Ken Russell, Laura Anderson, Michael A. Hepburn, and Xavier L. Suarez.
Name recognition: In September, Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is not related to Kenneth DeSantis, endorsed González, a retired U.S. Army Colonel and fellow Republican.
Suarez, who served as Miami mayor from 1985 to 1993 and from 1997 to 1998, is the father of Miami Mayor Francis Suarez.
Carollo, a former Metro Dade police officer, served as a city commissioner, a city vice mayor, and two terms as Miami mayor from 1996 to 1997 and from 1998 to 2001.
Legal trouble: De La Portilla is a former Miami commissioner who served from 2020 to 2023 when Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended him over a corruption case that prosecutors later dropped.
Carollo, who lives near Little Havana, has an arrest record. In 2001, police officers arrested him for domestic violence, and prosecutors dropped the case after he agreed to attend anger management classes.
Later in 2023, a federal jury in civil court sided with two businessmen who won $63.5 million in damages against Carollo for “weaponizing” city employees to violate their rights after they supported one of his political opponents.
INTERACTIVE GRAPHIC
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