MIAMI — Miami mayoral candidates Eileen Higgins, a Democrat, and Emilio González, a Republican, were preparing for a runoff election on Dec. 9 after getting the most votes in a crowded nonpartisan race of 13.
Higgins, a Miami-Dade County commissioner, had roughly 36% of the total votes on Tuesday. González, who served as Miami’s city manager from 2018 to 2020, had about 19%. The winner needed over 50%.
“They don’t want corruption, they don’t want chaos, and they sent a message loud and clear,” Higgins said about voters.
González, who had Gov. Ron DeSantis’s endorsement, and Higgins raised the most campaign monetary contributions among the candidates.
As of Monday afternoon, González, a retired U.S. Army Colonel who lives near Coconut Grove, had raised $217,766.
González, the Miami-Dade Aviation Department director from 2013 to 2017, has experience heading the Western Hemisphere Affairs at the National Security Council, was the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service director, and worked in the Office of Special Assistants for the Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Southern Command.
Higgins, who has experience as an engineer, was a marketing executive, the director of the Peace Corps in Belize, and a diplomat in the foreign service, raised about $193,548.
Even though the role of Miami mayor is technically non-partisan, the runoff election is likely to be viewed in a very political lens due to DeSantis’ endorsement of González and Higgins receiving support from many Democratic figures.
Ken Russell, a former Miami commissioner and a Democrat, had 18% of the total votes, and Republican Joe Carollo, a Miami commissioner and former mayor, followed with 11%.
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez’s father, Xavier Suarez, a former Miami mayor, had 5% of the votes. Alex Diaz de La Portilla, a former Miami commissioner, also had 5% of the votes.
“If you had been in a coma 30 years ago and woken up yesterday, you would have seen, ‘Hey, it’s the same people. Nothing has changed here.’ And, when people don’t change, policies don’t change,” González said.
Voters also approved a ballot measure imposing lifetime term limits.
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