Voters on Tuesday re-elected Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber for his third and final term, giving him two more years in office to continue his planned overhaul of South Beach’s entertainment district.
Gelber defeated four other candidates in the mayoral campaign with over 60% of the vote. In two races of the city commission, however, runoff elections will be required in two weeks to decide who will join Gelber in the grandstand in the town hall.
Gelber’s campaign focused on his four years at the helm of the city and his plan to transform the 10-block South Beach entertainment district from a party center to a “live, work, play” area with new homes, offices and cultural spaces “.
He also campaigned for a citywide referendum to be passed to reduce alcohol sales to 2 a.m., which voters approved on Tuesday.
Gelber, who was first elected in 2017, said the two wins showed that Miami Beach residents are fed up with the harsh party profile of South Beach and ready for change.
“That nightly hard party is over,” he told reporters.
Campaigner Liliana Martinez takes a photo with Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber at his re-election party at the Betsy Hotel in Miami Beach on Tuesday, November 2, 2021. Emily MIchot [email protected]
Gelber, who won re-election unchallenged in 2019, beat real estate agent Jean Marie Echemendia, businessman Ronnie Eith, property manager Gus Manessis and Carlos Enrique Gutierrez, also a property manager. Echemendia took second place with around 26% of the votes.
Gelber, 60, will return to a city commission with two new faces, as commissioners Michael Góngora and Micky Steinberg have been recalled. It was unclear on Tuesday evening who would take their places.
Runoff elections are required in the Group I and Group III commission races as no candidate has received more than 50% of the vote. The two best candidates in each race will face a runoff on November 16.
At the Góngora Group I headquarters, former Commissioner Kristen Rosen Gonzalez was the leading voter on Tuesday evening, with Raquel Pacheco in second place.
At Steinberg’s Group III seat, Alex Fernandez, a member of the Miami Beach Planning Board, was second ahead of Stephen Cohen.
Group I.
Rosen Gonzalez, 48, has branded herself an anti-establishment candidate who speaks out against overbuilding and the sale of public land while pushing for “zero tolerance” police policies to crack down on even minor criminal offenses.
Rosen Gonzalez, a professor at Miami Dade College, served on the city commission from 2015 to 2018 but resigned to lead an unfortunate bid for Congress. In 2019 she lost her offer to recapture her old commission seat in a runoff election against the current commissioner Steven Meiner.
Her campaign, much like her tenure on the Commission, had its share of controversy. She was criticized and later apologized after falsely claiming to be Hispanic in a promotional interview with the Miami-Dade Democratic Party.
In a statement, Rosen Gonzalez thanked her supporters and said their work was not finished.
“I congratulate everyone in our race and am ready to work hard for the next two weeks as Miami Beach deserves an independent voice on the commission,” she said.
Former Miami Beach Commissioner Kristen Rosen Gonzalez is a candidate in the Group 1 commission race. Courtesy of the candidate
Pacheco, the owner of a translation company, ran for the city commission in 2019, but lost in a runoff election to Commissioner Ricky Arriola.
Against Rosen Gonzalez this year, Pacheco presented herself as the more moderate candidate who would work to achieve consensus in the commission instead of pointing a finger at those she disagrees with. Like Rosen Gonzalez, Pacheco said she makes the fight against crime her top priority and has proposed doubling the number of officers on foot patrols and enforcing existing laws banning alcohol in public.
Pacheco, supported by Miami Beach Commission David Richardson and the Miami-Dade Democratic Party, faced bankruptcy issues in 2017 and wrote on a 2019 resume that she was with former Republican Senator Rick Santorum, the former Republican presidential candidate who once called for a constitutional amendment to define marriage as between a man and a woman.
Raquel Pacheco, Miami Beach Commission candidate in Group 1 Raquel Pacheco campaign
On behalf of Pacheco, campaign spokesman Jeff Garcia said Tuesday that Pacheco would bring “responsible adult leadership” to the city commission.
“Voters have reacted very positively to Raquel’s leadership, to her demeanor, to her sense of responsibility, to a character and behavior that is appropriate and appropriate for a commissioner,” he said.
Group III
Fernandez, a senior communications advisor and legislative assistant to Miami Dade Commissioner Rebeca Sosa, entered the Group III race late after temporary Commissioner Góngora dropped his offer for re-election following a court order.
Fernandez, who ran against Góngora for the city commission in 2009, received Góngora’s support in this year’s election and became the top fundraiser in his race, although he didn’t start until September.
Fernandez, 35, said he supports increased police staffing, law enforcement and park staff to keep South Beach clean.
He has suggested using the city’s permitting powers to force operators to be better partners in improving the quality of life in the city. Consistent police enforcement and more visible patrols will send a message to tourists that Miami Beach is not a go-to destination, he said.
Alex Fernandez, Miami Beach Commission candidate in Group 3 Courtesy of the Miami Herald
Fernandez, who raised $ 100,000 and loaned an additional $ 64,300 to his campaign, may have received the most campaign donations, but he doesn’t have the largest war chest among the candidates. Stephen Cohen, a 43-year-old investor, loaned his campaign over $ 330,000 and raised approximately $ 5,000 from other donors. He said his campaign does not accept donations from “special interest” companies and hotels.
A portion of Cohen’s personal income went to a political committee that attacked Fernandez for recently converting to the Republicans. Fernandez changed his voter registration in 2020, saying he voted for President Joe Biden. He condemned the attack as an attempt to distract voters from issues that matter to them, such as crime and sea level rise.
Cohen founded a community Facebook group, now with almost 7,000 users, to keep residents up to date on city issues. He said the city should adopt its social media marketing strategy to better connect with the community.
Cohen, who lost in his 2019 commission run, said in a statement Tuesday that he was looking forward to the runoff election. In a crowded field of candidates, Cohen said he was “the best candidate to fight for seniors and middle class families, safer streets and the fight against climate change”.
“I’m honored that Miami Beach voters have put their trust in me,” he said.
Stephen Cohen, Miami Beach Commission Candidate in Group 3 Stephen Cohen Campaign
This story was originally published November 2, 2021 10:11 PM.
Martin Vassolo reports on the politics and government of Miami Beach for the Miami Herald. He started working for the Herald in January 2018 after attending the University of Florida where he served as Editor-in-Chief of The Independent Florida Alligator. Before that, he worked as a general contract reporter at the Herald metro counter and as an intern in political reporting.
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