Primary season comes to a close in the Sunshine State, with several seats for various positions being up for grabs in Miami-Dade County, including the Miami-Dade Commission and several judicial seats. Miami-Dade County Commission Races are nonpartisan, and a candidate must receive over 50% of the vote to avoid a runoff or a general election.
Commissioner Marleine Bastien defeated two political outsiders to remain in her seat in District 2, taking the race with 78% of the vote. Danielle Cohen Higgins also won reelection in District 8 with 55% of the vote, defeating former Palmetto Bay Mayor John DuBois.
Commissioner Vicki Lopez of District 5 will have her seat go into a runoff between her and former U.S. Marine Rob Piper. Lopez took the seat earlier this year after Eileen Higgins became Mayor of Miami.
A referendum allowing the City of Miami to contract with a private firm to manage events at the Miami Marine Stadium was approved by voters there. The referendum would hire the firm to also help fund the restoration of the venue. Voters also approved the change to hold City of Miami elections in even-numbered years. The change will begin in 2034.
Two school board seats were also up for grabs this year. District 1 will see a runoff between Katrina Wilson and Linda Cothiere to succeed Steve Gallon III, who resigned to run for the county commission. Gallon endorsed Wilson, who is a former school principal and former councilwoman in Miami Gardens.
District 8 saw incumbent Monica Colucci win reelection, securing her seat with a whopping 92% of the vote. Colucci ran on career education and protecting students’ educational opportunities. She defeated Sam Joseph, an education advocate and political outsider, who qualified as a write-in candidate.
Miami Gardens held elections for two council seats. Consultant Paul Wilson, Jr. won his race for seat 2, while seat 4 will hold a runoff between Mykita Cherry-Prime and Rod Mack.
In judicial races, lawyer Destiny Alvarez narrowly defeated incumbent Mavel Ruiz. Alvarez was backed by several Trump allies, including U.S. Ambassador to Brazil Daniel Perez, following Ruiz’s role in the lawsuit against Miami-Dade College over the Trump Presidential Library land dispute. Alvarez defeated Ruiz by just over one percent of the vote. Four other judicial races were won outright, while the rest will go to a runoff.
All of these candidates will be facing off in the general election on November 3. To vote, make sure your voter registration is up to date, and check where you are registered so you know all your voting options.
For more election coverage, check out our stories on federal elections, state legislative elections and local elections.