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Mayor Vince Lago brings Peter Iglesias back as Coral Gables city manager
As expected and predicted in this very space, Coral Gables Mayor Vince Lago has brought back former City Manager Peter Iglesias — who was fired last year by the old commission majority — to the top administrative job in the City Beautiful.
Lago, who was re-elected last month, campaigned on bringing Iglesias back and presented a resolution to name Iglesias manager at Tuesday’s commission meeting. Everyone knew this was coming after his remarks about the longtime public servant and engineer at the swearing-in ceremony where it seemed he was going to cry when he told Iglesias to stand and be recognized.
It was also expected to be a 3-2 vote with the new majority, all of whom won the April elections, voting in favor at Tuesday’s long commission meeting. So far, newly-elected Commissioner Richard Lara — who made a big deal about being independent and not a handpicked Lago lackey pocket vote — has voted lockstep with the mayor and the vice mayor. It’s an echo chamber with the three repeating each other’s remarks in mutual admiration.
Iglesias, who wasn’t there at City Hall but was on Zoom during the meeting, will start Friday and make $295,000 a year. He will work for 20 months, which is right after the next election, which the commission also moved Tuesday to November 2026 (more on that later).
Read related: Coral Gables Vince Lago may move to bring back City Manager Peter Iglesias
Lago — who is having trouble turning the page, as he said he would when sworn in — showed how butt hurt he still is about the firing of Iglesias after he lost the majority and the hiring of former City Manager Amos Rojas on the spot at a commission meeting. Kinda like what happened Tuesday. “The manner in which this was done was shameful,” Lago said, adding that lifeguards get more vetting than the manager got and that the decision “deeply demoralized our staff.”
But he also revealed the real reason he didn’t like it. “As a mayor, I wasn’t even granted the courtesy of getting his resumé,” L’Ego said. So, again, it seems that it was because it wasn’t his idea. He even mocked Commissioner Melissa Castro‘s comments at the time about Rojas’ LinkedIn profile, which was all she had to go on. Like googling him was a bad idea.
“I am in complete disgust with the hypocrisy of this body right now,” Castro said, and one doesn’t know if she is referring to the promises to go to a national search or the complaints about appointing a city manager as a surprise at a live meeting. Or both.
Castro said Iglesias might be a good guy and have achieved some things in the city, but after the election in 2023 — which she and Commissioner Ariel Fernandez against Lago’s wishes and well-funded handpicked candidates — the manager kept her in the dark. “He was favoring certain individuals on this commission and one of them was not me,” Castro said. She also said Iglesias had once told her “employees are lazy and don’t want to work,” when she would suggest ideas to streamline services.
“Employees do not like Peter,” Castro said. “You know who likes Peter? Department directors.”
Read related: Coral Gables skips search, hires new city manager Amos Rojas on the spot
Fernandez was the one who last year spearheaded the firing of Iglesias, who he said did not respond to residents and was insubordinate to him for 10 months after the was elected. But he really started trying to fire him the month after he was elected. He said Iglesias “was actively keeping us in the dark. To what end? Nobody knows.”
Iglesias had his own agenda, Fernandez said. That included the mobility hub that Lago was pushing and developing a city parking lot. “Those were his priorities while City hall feel apart and the gondola building collapsed.” He also blamed him for the delays in reopening what used to be Burger Bob’s.
“We need to have someone who respects our staff, works with all the commissioners,” Fernandez added. “Peter Iglesias is not a unifying voice.”
Lago, Anderson and Lara — who have replaced Castro, Fernandez and former Commissioner Kirk Menendez as the majority — said that Iglesias would bring stability back to City Hall at a time when it would be crucial to have his experience and leadership skills at the helm. The budget process is about to begin and the renovations of City Hall are ongoing.
Read related: Vince Lago scores with Richard Lara’s Coral Gables commission runoff win
Lara further said that it was something he campaigned on, as well, although he advocated for a national search, and that he first decided to run for office after the “unceremonious firing.” He also lashed out at Castro and said Iglesias may have been fired because “one commissioner didn’t feel she was getting enough attention.” He called the firing “improper” and “illicit.
“Simply because something can be done, doesn’t mean it is the right thing to do,” Lara said.
But Anderson wasn’t listening. Later, when she voted for the mayor’s move to rescind a pilot permit expediting program that Castro had worked on for months to give residents and business owners the option to speed up their permitting process for a premium, she said basically the opposite. “The rules do allow the new board to undo an old board’s motion,” the vice mayor said.
To quote Lara: Simply because something can be done, doesn’t mean it is the right thing to do.
The post Mayor Vince Lago brings Peter Iglesias back as Coral Gables city manager appeared first on Political Cortadito.
Internal poll has Richard Lamondin in striking distance vs Maria Elvira Salazar
An internal poll shows that Richard Lamondin, one of the Democrats hoping to challenge Congresswoman Maria Elvira Salazar in District 27, is “within striking distance,” which is closer than one might expect for a newbie with no name recognition. The numbers indicate Lamondin is trailing the incumbent by just three points, which is within the margin of error.
This is good news for his campaign because (1) voters still don’t know who this guy is, (2) the election is almost 18 months away, which is plenty of time to introduce him to them, and (3) a closer look shows the results could be more an indication of how disliked Salazar is, as her unfavorable ratings seem to grow.
Read related: Maria Elvira Salazar may already have a 2026 opponent in Richard Lamondin
And only a little more than 10% were undecided. Again, 18 months out!
Lamondin is a first-time candidate and environmental entrepreneur whose company boasts saving more than 10 billion gallons of water and preventing over 300,000 metric tons of carbon emissions. He is one of two Democrats running for the chance to challenge Salazar next year. Former Key Biscayne Mayor Mike Davey — who lost in last year’s primary against former School Board Member Lucia Baez-Geller — announced he would try again earlier this month. Salazar beat Baez-Geller by more than 20 points, but she was riding Trump’s coattails, which won’t be picking up hitchhikers in 2026.
Read related: Democrat Mike Davey aims to try again for congressional seat in District 27
Furthermore, the poll shows that voters, like those nationwide, are increasingly disapproving of President Donald Trump. A majority of the respondents believe that Congress is doing “poor to very poor” in addressing affordability and quality of life and nearly 50% strongly disapprove of Trump’s handling of the economy. Only a third gave him high marks for that.
Salazar has come under fire recently for her silence and complicity as Trump rolls out his mass detentions and deportations of illegal immigrants, many of whom live in our community, or her district. She was blasted for taking credit when a federal judge stopped the removal of temporary protective status of 350,000 Venezuelan nationals, something her president’s administration appealed. ¡Que cínica! (The Supreme Court on Monday let the Trump Administration go ahead and remove TPS.)
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has put Salazar in the list of vulnerable Republicans and have targeted her in Florida, along with Congress members Cory Mills (CD07 in New Smyrna Beach) and Anna Paulina Luna (CD13 in St. Petersburg).
District 27 covers parts of Miami, Coral Gables, Cutler Bay, Key Biscayne, Pinecrest, North Bay Village, South Miami, West Miami and several unincorporated areas of Miami-Dade.
Read related: Maria Elvira Salazar takes credit for judge extending TPS for Venezuelans
It may seem a bit early for polls about next November’s congressional races, but political consultant Christian Ulvert might be underwhelmed with nothing much to do these days. So he commissioned this poll in mid April. His buddy Michael Worley, at MDW Communications, sampled 555 voters from across District 27 over four days, April 9th to the 12th. The demographic breakdown was 63% Hispanic, 30% White, 2% Black/Caribbean, and 5% other. And 33% of the respondents identified as Democrats, 41% as Republicans and 26% as no party affiliation or NPAs.
“This data affirms what we are hearing on the ground: voters are fed up with the status quo and ready for a change,” Ulvert said in a statement. “Richard Lamondin’s message of economic fairness, green job creation, and common-sense leadership is resonating. With national momentum building and local frustration deepening, FL-27 is firmly in play.”
Ulvert and his team are also encouraged by other flips across the country, including in Florida, where Dems in Escambia County recently beat Republican candidates by over 20 points. The special elections last month in Florida’s 1st and 6th congressional districts were won by Republicans but by vastly smaller margins than Trump won in November.
And because Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava — Ulvert’s highest profile client right now — could run for governor in 2026, the poll also shows her favorability as super high, with almost 57% approving her job as mayor and less than 20% having strong disapproval. That’s less than half of the 45% that have strong disapproval of both Trump and Elon Musk.
Only 45% for Musk? That’s the surest sign this poll could be flawed.
The post Internal poll has Richard Lamondin in striking distance vs Maria Elvira Salazar appeared first on Political Cortadito.
Commissioner Miguel Gabela set to expose more Bayfront Park Trust issues
It’s been a little more than three months since Miami Commissioner Joe Carollo was accused of using the Bayfront Park Management Trust as a personal slush fund for himself and his political pals. But we’re about to find out that there’s been even more misuse of the public monies during some of the eight years that Carollo was chairman of the city agency.
Commissioner Miguel Angel Gabela, who was made chairman of the Trust after Carollo was stripped of the title, has called for an emergency Trust meeting Tuesday to discuss “newly discovered items identified during the initial review of the organization and to advise the board that additional issues are pending,” according to a press statement sent over the weekend. City officials and trust members — including the new executive director, Raul Miro — will be there, starting at 1 p.m., to “address the findings and outline potential next steps regarding the park’s administration and future.”
Miro was named director last month, because the last director, Jose Suarez, was pressured to leave after confronting Carollo about questionable Trust transactions.
Read related: Miami Commissioner Joe Carollo and the Bayfront Fountain of corruption
Suarez, once Carollo’s chief of staff, and finance director Jose Canto say they were forced to resign after they questioned the “lack of proper accounting practices and procedures that enabled Carollo to use the Trust’s funds to pay for Carollo’s own political ventures, his District 3 political office, his political allies, his District 3 social media provider, a 2007 van to use as a veterinarian mobile that was never used and was likely overpriced, and the commissioner’s holiday party.
“Carollo has attempted to use the Trust to pay or provide premium benefits to Carollo’s personal friends, including paying $20,000 for a yacht party for Carollo, his friends and family, and District 3 Office,” their legal complaint, filed in January, says. Another $45,000 was diverted to the Little Havana Fridays events that Carollo’s started to compete with an already popular event organized by critics — which has nothing to do with Bayfront or Maurice Ferre Park, which is also overseen by the Trust.
“Together, these wrongful expenditures totaled hundreds of thousands of dollars of misused and wasted Trust funds in less than one year, and Carollo has chaired the Trust for the past eight years without any legitimate oversight.”
So, it is safe to assume that some of the other seven years have been looked at, and already there were problems found.
Gabela did not return several calls to his cellphone. He is still mad at Ladra for calling him out on the pensions he wanted to propose last year. But in a statement, Gabela said, “This is a critical moment to ensure transparency and accountability in how we manage one of our city’s most cherished public spaces.”
Ladra does not know why it is an “emergency” meeting. Couldn’t Gabela just bring these issues up at the commission meeting on Thursday, when everyone is going to be there? At least it is going to be at City Hall, not the bunker where the Trust usually meets, so that may encourage more participation. The press release says “all residents, community leaders, and members of the media are encouraged to attend.”
This comes on the heels of a couple of contentious choques entre Gabela y Carollo. They have really gone after each other in the last two meetings, with Gabela calling Carollo a Nicolas Maduro wannabe and Carollo addressing Gabela as Tony. Tony Soprano. Carollo tried to derail the establishment of the Allapattah Community Redevelopment Agency, which he had previously supported, and everyone knows it’s because Gabela is the new Bayfront Trust chair.
Ladra has heard whispers about what they may be ready to reveal Tuesday: More details about discrepancies with the cash receipts from parking — called the “money room,” which held tens of thousands of dollars at a time — and the safety issues that led to the fountain, which just completed a $5.5 million renovation, being closed down again after Carollo rushed to get it open and operating for his big New Year’s Eve bash, which ended up being a long, free commercial for the commissioner, who wants to run for mayor this year.
Read related: Bayfront Park board member resigns on Joe Carollo’s $1 mil no-bid giveaway
But there has to be more. Because Carollo was in charge over there for eight years. A lot of graft can happen in eight years.
Carollo’s control of the Trust has been shady for years. There was a petition to remove him as chair of the Trust in early 2024, before any of the recent allegations were even made. That would include drugs that reportedly disappeared from the vet mobile, which was purchased for $115,000, which seems hugely over inflated and could be one of the kickbacks that the complaint says are rampant in the agency.
Then there is the $1 million spent on the Dogs and Cats Walkway that never went through a competitive process because the sculptures were reportedly provided by a friend of the commissioner’s wife, Marjory Carollo. That led to the resignation of a board member in 2021.
Then there is the outdoor gym that was put in place last year without the proper permitting or process. Was that also a non-bid award? To one of his friends? For a kickback? That might explain why he fought so hard to keep it there.
So, there are likely some big revelations coming on Tuesday. But Ladra also hopes they say that there’s more digging to be done.
The post Commissioner Miguel Gabela set to expose more Bayfront Park Trust issues appeared first on Political Cortadito.
Ralph Rosado is a fraud, liar, puppet trying to become Miami commissioner
Is Miami Commission District 4 candidate Ralph Rosado a habitual liar or a compulsive liar? Or is he a pathological liar?
A habitual liar falls into the habit of lying because it’s easier or more convenient than telling the truth. A compulsive liar gets a “high” — similar to other drug addictions — when they can get away with a lie and fool somebody. So they often can’t help themselves. Pathological lying is more likely to be intentional, manipulative and self-serving and can lead to serious impairment of functioning in social, occupation and other areas, according to a 2020 study.
In his bid to replace the late Miami Commissioner Manolo Reyes, who died in April, urban planning consultant Ralph Rosado — running against Jose Regalado of those Regalados in a special election June 3 — sent out an email this week to voters, swearing to be an independent candidate. It’s another lie. Because he’s Commissioner Joe Carollo‘s guy.
“From the start of this campaign, I’ve made it clear that I am running as an independent voice — not aligned with any political group or current elected official. However, my opponent’s campaign, in desperation due to their inability to find issues with my character, accomplishments or platform, has chosen to mislead voters and lie about ‘endorsements,’” Rosado wrote in the email.
“So, let me be clear: I have not sought, nor have I accepted, endorsements from anyone on the City Commission because I believe this moment calls for a new kind of leadership at City Hall.”
Read related: Ralph Rosado keeps lying, misleading voters in Miami Commission D4 race
He put that last sentence in bold. But he knows its bullshit. Because Carollo has not only endorsed him — naturally, it’s not official… one wouldn’t put this on a door hanger — but the commissioner accused of abusing his power, and who has cost the city millions in legal fees, is also pouring tens of thousands from his political action committee to pay for mailers and TV ads for Rosado.
Carollo is so involved, in fact, that he was seen directing the video that Rosado recorded at a city park to use in an ad. And Rosado got caught lying to Ladra about that, as well. He said Carollo wasn’t there. “He wasn’t directing.” When he clearly was. Even Marjory Carollo was there, with a clipboard in her arms, cradled like a baby.
And Rosado is lying to voters again, about a “candidate forum” that he attended this week where there was an empty seat theatrically set up for Jose Regalado.
“Thank you to all the neighbors who came out to this week’s District 4 candidate forum. I was proud to be the only candidate who showed up — sharing my vision answering your questions and listening to what matters most to you,” Rosado posted on Instagram. “Showing up for this community isn’t just something I talk about — it’s something I practice. And I’ll continue showing up, every day, for District 4 as your Commissioner.”
Except Tuesday’s event wasn’t a forum for District 4 candidates with the Shenandoah Neighborhood Association, as first reported erroneously in the Floridian Press (it has since been fixed). It was an ambush in Silver Bluff, which is mostly District 3, Joe Carollo’s district — just a tiny sliver is in D4 — by the president of the Loco Joe Pollo Carollo Fan Club, Beba Sardiñas Mann, who got illegal street closures in her neighborhood in 2021, if temporarily, thanks to the commissioner’s abuse of the system. A judge had them forcibly removed in 2023. Most of the questions at Tuesday’s forum were asked by Beba’s hubby.
Read related: Miami’s District 4 candidate Ralph Rosado is backed, helped by Joe Carollo
Jose Regalado, who was invited after the event was posted, never confirmed.
“My only communication regarding this event was a brief text message from the intended moderator — no direct conversation, no confirmation of my availability, and no discussion of debate format or topics,” Regalado wrote in an email to the Silver Bluff Homeowners Association.
“While I deeply respect neighborhood and homeowners associations and strongly support their role in promoting community engagement, I have significant concerns about fairness and impartiality in this instance,” he added. “The individual organizing and moderating this debate maintains a close, pubic relationship with a commissioner who is actively managing my opponent’s campaign, personally funding attacks against me exceeding $250,000 from his own campaign account, and using his daily radio show to spread misinformation about my candidacy.”
“Genuine debates require transparency, neutrality, and procedural fairness, conditions clearly not met here. That said, I remain fully available and eager to openly discuss any topics or concerns directly with residents, neighborhood and homeowners associations or any community group,” Regalado said. “District 4 voters deserve transparency and fairness, and I’ll continue advocating for exactly that.”
In other words, Regalado — who had gone to a meet and greet (Rosado also went) the day before with the Shenandoah Neighborhood Association — knew it was a political stunt to begin with. That is why Rosado reportedly took a film crew/photographer for campaign material.
Because Rosado, who did not return calls and texts from Ladra, is a fraud on top of being a liar and a puppet.
What does Carollo want in return for his investment? Rosado’s vote, of course.
The new commissioner, Regalado or Rosado, will be elected on June 3 and in place for the June 12 meeting where Commissioner Damian Pardo wants to present a measure to put lifetime term limits on the November ballot. Carollo, who wants to run for mayor and could be blocked by this, is against it. Guess which way Rosado will vote if he’s elected. He has to pay Carollo back somehow.
Read related: Miami commissioners could extend terms, gain a year for themselves, mayor
Who knows what else is on corrupt Carollo’s revenge wishlist? Destroying the community redevelopment agencies? Outdoor gym equipment in every park? We can say goodbye to the Bayfront Park Management Trust. Since he was removed as chair, because of accusations he used the budget as his own personal slush fund, he has said the Trust needs to go.
The Little Havana businessmen who own Ball & Chain and have been a target of Carollo’s political ire could be in trouble. So is Coconut Grove — all of it — just because Carollo has been wanting to spite them since the redistricting fight in 2023.
So is anyone he considers an enemy, including city employees who won’t do his bidding.
That’s why Carollo is so desperately helping Rosado. The election June 3 is going to change the dynamic on the commission and either give Crazy Joe a majority or, in most cases, freeze him out.
“Voters are looking for honesty, transparency, and a commitment to serve the public — not political alliances or agendas, or more of the same,” Rosado writes in his email, very cynically, because he is not honest or transparent, has a political alliance and is more of the same.
A fraud.
A liar.
A puppet.
The post Ralph Rosado is a fraud, liar, puppet trying to become Miami commissioner appeared first on Political Cortadito.
Vince Lago’s ego gets in the way of serving Coral Gables residents — again
There’s a pilot program ready to go in Coral Gables that would significantly shorten the time that both homeowners and business owners take pulling a permit from the city to do any interior renovations, no matter how small. It would mean the city partners with a contractor to review these plans, at no cost to the city.
Actually, it would bring in revenue because property owners would have to opt into this process and pay a %15 percent additional cost if they want to speed things up. The city staff loves the idea that would not only bring in non tax funding but also help them focus on other permits that are also slowed down by the sheer workload.
But Coral Gables Mayor Vince Lago wants to stop the program before it starts — just because it wasn’t his idea.
Or maybe because it was Commissioner Melissa Castro‘s.
Read related: Coral Gables Mayor Vince Lago lashes out at Commissioner Melissa Castro
This is a fact. He said as much to Carlos Penin, the highly respected engineer and president of C.A.P. Government, who has been working with the city for three months to get this program off the ground. They work with about 80 cities and school boards across the state doing pretty much the same thing, he said — reviewing plans to make determinations about what can and cannot be done by code and recommendations for changes, if needed.
Penin was at City Hall when Castro brought this program to the city commission in February, and it passed 3-2. Lago and Vice Mayor Rhonda Anderson voted against it. They vote against all of Castro’s ideas, even reduced parking fees for residents.
The mayor approached Penin outside commission chambers and told him that he was going to kill the program after the April election, confident that he would win back the majority (which he did). Why? Because Penin should have gone to him. Not Castro.
“This is not skipping any steps,” Penin said, explaining that his employees would do the same review and make determinations using the Gables code, “because this is what we do.
“But because it’s someone else’s idea, it’s scrapped? Coral Gables needs to, hopefully, with this administration, get out of this pettiness” Penin told Political Cortadito, adding that the pilot program could be expanded if it works well, and cancelled if it doesn’t.
“I think the mayor should give this a try. If it wasn’t his idea, too bad,” Penin said. “I’d be happy to help him with another idea.”
Good luck with that, Mr. Penin.
Lago is on a revenge tour since winning the election April 8 and getting his slate in with Anderson and Commissioner Richard Lara. He has a slew of items on the commission agenda to undo things the former commission majority had passed — like their salary increases — consolidate his power, and move his own issues, like the election date change to November, forward. The mayor didn’t return calls and texts from Ladra, as usual.
Read related: Post-election Vince Lago revenge tour in Coral Gables = political retaliation
But Castro is, naturally, disconcerted.
“This is only for interior remodeling,” she said, sounding exasperated. “Your permit will be approved in a smaller amount of time, a five day turnaround. These are smaller jobs that don’t go to the board of architects. After I prove it works, we can move on to pools and windows.”
Most of the plans that would be reviewed by C.A.P. Government would be bathroom and kitchen remodels.
“They’re not that hard,” said Castro, who is in the permit expediting business herself (so this goes against her own interests). “And they’re taking the city forever. The building department needs the help. It’s notorious for being one of the worst departments. A contractor finds out the work is in Coral Gables and they will quote you three times more because they know that Coral Gables is a pain in the neck.”
Penin lives in Coral Gables and has an office in the City Beautiful. So he wants to help.
“But if the mayor doesn’t want it, yo voy a comer mañana, anyway,” Penin said.
Sure, he’ll make money. So will the city. Residents who want to opt in will pay a 15% higher fee and residents who don’t want to pay more will still have their permits reviewed quicker because of the reduced pressure on the pipeline. It’s a win, win, win.
“If we take just 10% of the load off the building department, everything will go faster,” Penin said. “How can you not be in favor of that? It would be a shame if they didn’t give it a chance. They’re killing it on the vine.”
Because L’Ego can’t brag about it being his idea and, as he has said, he wants to hurt any chance that Castro has of being re-elected in 2027. He can’t let her have this feather in her cap.
The post Vince Lago’s ego gets in the way of serving Coral Gables residents — again appeared first on Political Cortadito.
Miami commissioners could extend terms, gain a year for themselves, mayor
Francis Suarez and Joe Carollo want to stick around
In a perfect example of how a good idea can get twisted and turned into an evil plan, the city of Miami Commission is poised to consider a change to the municipal’s biannual election year — from odd to even, to coincide with state and national elections — that would end up extending the terms of all the current electeds by a year.
That means that Mayor Francis Suarez and Commissioner Joe Carollo — who are both facing term limits and are, reportedly, the ones behind this move — will get to stick around until November 2026. Commission Chairwoman Christine King would not have to campaign for re-election until next year.
This idea will be brought to the commission, not this month but at a a later time, by Commissioner Damian Pardo. It is not part of the measure he will bring to next week’s meeting to put lifetime term limits on the ballot, so that, if voters approve, electeds in Miami can’t sit out a term and run for the same seat later.
“These are not things that are tied together,” Pardo told Political Cortadito on Wednesday. “One thing is not contingent on the other.”
But the election year change, when it comes back at a subsequent meeting, is related to the term limits, because there are several candidates already running in this year’s election who would be excluded under the lifetime term limits (i.e. former Commissioner Frank Carollo for his old seat and Joe Carollo for mayor, where he already served from 1996 to 1997 and again from 1998 to 2001. They and the charter amendment would be on the same ballot. And Pardo says he is trying to avoid a legal challenge.
Read related: Voters in Miami may get to strengthen term limits and ban political retreads
“I asked the city attorney what happens if the candidate and ballot initiative pass at the same time,” Pardo told Political Cortadito. “And he said that may be a challenge that works.”
“If we move the elections at the same time as we’re making the lifetime term limits, it won’t be clean. It would be challenged,” he said. “So we wait another cycle.”
How about we wait another cycle on the change of the election date? Lifetime term limits are not a bad idea. But it’s not worth keeping Carollo and Suarez around for a year. We’re almost rid of them. Can’t we do this later? After they’re gone?
Pardo also thinks that it’s worth the bitter pill we’d have to swallow to get a higher turnout on Election Day. The difference would be from the 10-15% range to the 65 to 80% range. That would completely stop the Joe Carollos and Alex Diaz de la Portillas of the world from getting elected because there are not enough turkeys at Thanksgiving or pastelitos to buy that many votes. Pardo says it more diplomatically.
“That changes the kind of commission candidate you get,” he said. “You will have to appeal to a different demographic. The entire political landscape in the city of Miami changes. Boom!”
He says it is something that he came up with todo solito, and not because Suarez had threatened to veto his term limits thing unless he did this, too, like las malas lenguas say.
But who would benefit the most? Suarez and Carollo.
Suarez has hinted a possible run for governor in 2026 and could use the bully pulpit and fundraising palanca that the incumbent mayor of the state’s most important city would bring. He may also want another year to solidify his legacy and get projects like the Miami Marine Stadium redevelopment started and Miami Freedom Park closer to finished for the postalita photo opps.
And Carollo just knows he’s not going to win a citywide mayoral race and, thus, has no place else to go. Doral just got a new city manager (more on that later), so going back there is out.
That’s why it looks like City Attorney George Wysong has been researching this. He told the Miami Herald that the City Commission has the authority to move the election back one year all by themselves, without having to go to a referendum. What The Herald story didn’t say was that Wysong is relying on Florida State statutes that are really for “continuity, ease, practicality and efficiency,” said former Commissioner Ken Russell, who has filed to run for mayor.
“They are misusing the statute. It’s an overreach for self serving purposes.”
The commission, Russell says, can’t just wave a magic wand and change the election year.
“By charter, we have odd year voting elections,” Russell said on TikTok, where he is campaigning a lot. He said that a change can be put on the ballot by citizen petition or by a commission vote. “But the voters get to decide.
“There will be an election this year for mayor and there will be a change of leadership.”
He looks like he’s ready to challenge it. There goes Pardo’s reasoning.
Other candidates that may be in the running include Miami-Dade Commissioner Eileen Higgins, former Miami Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla, and former City Manager Emilio Gonzalez, who also reacted negatively, of course. “This is wrong,” he posted on social media. “This is a blatant power grab.
“Career politicians want to extend their terms, bypassing voters — in exchange for letting them weigh in on reforms. It’s straight out of the Maduro playbook,” Gonzalez wrote, referring to the Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro. “The voters must decide and no one is talking about them or to them.”
In what must be a sign of the apocalypse, Diaz de la Portilla agreed with Gonzalez and Russell. “Charter does not allow that,” he texted Ladra late Thursday about the ordinance. “It has to go to the people.”
Read related: Petition aims to add Miami commission districts, change election to even years
That is what a citizen-led petition drive announced last month wants to do — take it to the people. Led by Coconut Grove activists Mel Meinhardt and Anthony “Andy” Parrish, the Stronger Miami political action committee aims to change the election date to even years to increase turnout. They have created a coalition with a group of activist organizations and must collect around 26,000 signatures by sometime in the summer to get the question on the November ballot.
They are also petitioning to put two other questions to voters: Extending the commission from five to nine seats and codifying the fair district guidelines that were mandated by a judge.
The change in election cycles could result in the loss of a year instead, which Pardo said he was amenable to. But that seems to disenfranchise the voters who elected them with a four-year term in mind. So, Ladra is not sure she likes that idea, either, unless it becomes effective after their own next election. Cutting the term short would be wrong, unless voters approve it themselves and have fair warning.
And that’s another big reason why this shouldn’t even be considered. Because nobody told voters that terms would be extended for a year, either.
Help Ladra keep them honest. Consider making a contribution to Political Cortadito today and support independent watchdog journalism. There are important elections this year. Thank you.
The post Miami commissioners could extend terms, gain a year for themselves, mayor appeared first on Political Cortadito.
Holy Papa! Alex Diaz de la Portilla uses new Pope to campaign for Miami mayor
¡Sacrilegio! Nothing is sacred in Miami politics.
Former Miami Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla is known to take advantage of every opportunity when he is campaigning to send any message to voters that will keep his name in mind. The naming of a new Pope seems like a good one.
A mail piece paid for by his political action committee landed in mailboxes this week with the picture of the 267th occupant of the throne of St Peter — Robert Francis Provost, the first U.S.-born pope, who took the name of Leo XIV — on one side and a message from ADLP on the other. “We have a Pope,” it announces in Spanish.
It is not “we have potato,” like they might announce at a grocery store in Cuba.
And once again, Diaz de la Portilla — arrested in 2023 on public corruption charges that were dropped last Fall — mentions the “unjustly accused” in his spiel. He always has to make it all about him.
“¡Habemus Papam,” the message starts, which is the Latin phrase used to announce of the election of a new pope, which is traditionally made by the Protodeacon of the College of Cardinals or senior cardinal deacon participating in the papal conclave.
In other words, not by a political candidate with a super shady past.
Read related: Alex Diaz de la Portilla is knocking, giving out mameys to be Miami mayor
“Let us pray for Pope Leo XIV so that God can bless him and guide him to bring hope to the desperate, love to the abandoned, peace to the tormented and justice to those who are unjustly accused,” Diaz de la Portilla writes in his Spanish message.
ADLP is threatening to run for mayor, but he hasn’t filed any paperwork or opened a campaign account, yet. He has been knocking on doors, visiting senior housing and handing voters mameys in recent weeks. He has printed materials through his PAC, Proven Leadership for Miami-Dade County, but they just have his name on it. That way, he can switch to the county commission race in District 5 when and if Eileen Higgins resigns to run, which she must do before qualifying in September.
Or he could run for mayor against Higgins and what is looking like a clown car of candidates: Commissioner Joe Carollo is also actively threatening to run. Former Commissioner Ken Russell and former City Manager Emilio Gonzalez have filed papers.
And he is famous for holiday mailers, whether he is running for office or not. Earlier this month, he sent voters a Mothers Day mailer — even though the mayoral race isn’t until November. A photo of him and his mom, Fabiola, is on the top right corner and, once again, justice — or the lack of it — is the subject.
Read related: Alex Diaz de la Portilla’s PAC raises nada, spends $108K on Miami campaign
“There is no judge or court as just as mothers when they know their children have been unjustly attacked,” the piece says. “Today and always, in gratitude, I celebrate my mother and all the mothers who give and sacrifice so much to protect their children and who celebrate when they see their children’s names vindicated, not only by God’s divine justice, but also by the systems of just human law. To you, my sincere words of recognition for a labor of love for your children.”
Seems really specific. How many mothers have had to see their sons arrested and charged with bribery and money laundering and suspended from office by the governor?
Both mailers are paid by his PAC, which spent $108,000 in the first there months of this year, according to the campaign finance records filed with the State Division of Elections, which also show that he is working with Absentee Ballot Queen Sasha Tirador.
“She is the boss,” Diaz de la Portilla texted Ladra on Thursday.
The next report, recording transactions through June, is due in mid July.
Asked if he had gone too far with the Pope mailer, using the announcement of the new pope for his political gain — isn’t that a sin?– Diaz de la Portilla texted Ladra: “You don’t love the Pope? I love the pope.”
That’s surprising since the Leo XIV is a considered a progressive pope who has advocated for economic justice and immigration fairness. These are not the tenets of the Republican Party and Diaz de la Portilla’s favorite hero, President Donald Trump. and everyone says they’re headed on a collision course as the two most powerful men in the world.
But Ladra is certain he forgives you.
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The post Holy Papa! Alex Diaz de la Portilla uses new Pope to campaign for Miami mayor appeared first on Political Cortadito.
Leader of Recall Joe Carollo PAC joins Miami Commission race in District 3
Robert “Rob” Piper, who last we heard had chaired a political action committee that tried to recall Miami Commissioner Joe Carollo in 2020, filed paperwork this week to replace him on the dais in District 3 this November.
“There didn’t seem to be a great deal of choices,” Piper, who is also president of the Democrats of Coral Way, told Political Cortadito Thursday.
Maybe he means good choices.
Read related: Denise Galvez Turros announces she’ll run for Miami Commission in District 3
The retired U.S. Marine joins a crowded field led, most notably — or notarially — by former Commissioner Frank Carollo, the current commissioner’s brother. Other announced candidates include Oscar Elio Alejandro, a U.S. Navy vet and home renter; activist Yvonne Bayona, president of the Miami Historic East Shenandoah Homeowners Association; Brenda Betancourt, president of the Calle Ocho Inter-American Chamber of Commerce and a frequent speaker at commission meetings; Rolando Escalona, who is the manager of Sexy Fish Miami and a sleeper candidate; and Little Havana activist and booster Denise Galvez Turros, a PR marketing guru who served on the city’s Historic Preservation committee and ran unsuccessfully for the seat in 2017.
Candidates in the Miami D3: Oscar Elio Alejandro, Yvonne Bayona, Brenda Betancourt, Frank Carollo, Rolando Escalona and Denise Galvez Turros. Not shown: Robert Piper (pictured above and below).
But the qualification deadline is in September. Some of these people may drop out. Others may join.
Read related: Miami city attorneys conspired, created ‘cheat sheet’ to stop Joe Carollo recall
Piper was chair of Take Back Our City, the PAC that collected and filed more than 1,900 petition signatures to recall Carollo five years ago. The recall was legally challenged by the city on three fronts: that the submission of the petitions on Feb. 29, 2020 was improper because (1) the city does not recognize electronic filings, (2) it was not submitted by the chair and (3) a subsequent hand delivered submission of the petitions on March 2, 2020, was late because the first signature was obtained Jan. 31, 2020, so the window was missed for the completion.
According to the paperwork filed with the city clerk March 13, Piper lives at a home on 17th Terrace that he purchased in 2012 for $275,000. The assessed value today is $550,700 and the market value is $728,500.
But he does not claim a homestead exemption. He says that is because he has tenants in two in-law units that came with his property when he bought it. Records with the Miami-Dade clerk’s office shows he evicted one of those tenants last May.
Piper also has a Washington, D.C., area code on his cellphone. It is where he was stationed before he moved here in 2012.
The election for District 3 is in November. The next deadline to report campaign contributions and expenses is June 30. It will be the first report filed by Piper and Galvez.
There are so many important elections this year. Help Ladra stay on top of every new development with a contribution to Political Cortadito today. Thank you for supporting independent, grassroots journalism.
The post Leader of Recall Joe Carollo PAC joins Miami Commission race in District 3 appeared first on Political Cortadito.
Miami D4 campaign mailers cast race as commie rumbero vs liar who likes taxes
Joe Carollo and his PAC are back to same old tricks
It is so predictable that the special election for Miami Commission seat in District 4 would have someone calling one of the candidates a communist.
But it still hits strange that it would happen to Jose Regalado, the youngest son of former Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado, who arrived in the U.S. in 1962 as a Pedro Pan kid, shipped to the country by his parents in a massive Catholic Church operation to save children from the communist regime taking hold on the island. The mayor’s father, the candidate’s grandfather, spent 22 years as a political prisoner. His brother Tommy worked for TV Martí.
But those details are lost in this classic Joe Carollo tactic, which the Miami Commissioner — who is pushing hard to get Ralph Rosado elected, instead — has used in many, if not all, his campaigns. Carollo, whose political action committee is dropping daily mailers to D4 voters on Rosado’s behalf, doesn’t need proof. Communist is just a word he throws out. Like chavista.
“José Regalado doesn’t care about the pain of our people,” one mailer says in Spanish. “He tells you one thing upfront and does something else behind your back.” It’s intentionally vague, based on pure emotion, trying to irritate Cuban voters with a tired photo Carollo has used time and time again of Academy Award winning actor and known socialist apologist Sean Penn at a Miami Heat game in 2011. They just happened to run into each other. Ladra thinks it was during the Miami Film Festival.
Read related: Manolo Reyes’ widow comes out strong for Jose Regalado in D4 special election
At least this time, Carollo is using it against the right brother. In 2017, he used the same photo in a mail piece against Tomas N. “Tommy” Regalado when they both ran for commission.
But wait, there’s more.
Not only is Regalado a commie, like the rest of his family — but other mailers say the Regalados are laundering drug money for chavistas tied to the Venezuelan government (another recycled attack) and that the 40-year-old candidate is also a “rumbero,” which is cuban slang for partygoer or club aficionado. And how dare he enjoy our nightlife?
Regalado and Rosado are running in the special election June 3 to replace Manolo Reyes, who passed away last month. And Carollo is reportedly pouring at least half a million dollars from his PAC, Miami First, into the race. He is that desperate to get Rosado elected and get a third vote on the commission to move his agenda forward and block any attempts at true reforms like the lifetime term limits that Commissioner Damian Pardo is pushing (more on that later).
If it seems like life or death for him, it is because it is. This race could really either breathe life into Carollo’s power (and abuse) for whatever time he has left on the dais — which could be longer than we think if the election date is changed (more on that later) — or kill it for good. So Carollo is throwing everything at Regalado to see what sticks. That is also a classic Carollo tactic.
Ladra predicts that nothing will stick. Because D4 is Regalado Country. These people know the Regalados — which also include Miami-Dade Commissioner Raquel Regalado — are not cartel-cozying communist chavistas. That’s not even a stretch. That’s a giant heap de lo que pica el pollo. El Pollo Carollo, in this case.
Not such a stretch: A mailer sent earlier this month that paints Rosado as Carollo’s puppet and quotes a Political Cortadito exclusive in which the candidate outright lies to Ladra about the commissioner being at a city park with him to direct a video campaign ad. “Who will control Ralph Rosado on the Miami Commission,” the mailer asks in the headline. “Joe Carollo, who has cost the city of Miami taxpayers well over $15 million in legal fees for his defense and settlements due to his rampant abuse of power is openly funding and supporting Ralph Rosado’s campaign.
Read related: Miami’s District 4 candidate Ralph Rosado is backed, helped by Joe Carollo
“Ralph Rosado was caught lying about his close relationship to Joe Carollo,” it says on the other side, quoting the story in Political Cortadito from earlier this month: “Rosado… denied that Carollo had been at the park with him. ‘No. He was not directing. He wasn’t there,’ Rosado told Political Cortadito. When Ladra told him she had video of Carollo and his wife at the park with him and his mother-in-law, and asked if he wanted to change or stick to his answer, Rosado hesitated a little. Then he said, ‘I’ll get back to you.’”
He never did, by the way.
“Tell Ralph Rosado one Joe Carollo on the City of Miami Commission is enough,” it ends.
Actually, one Joe Carollo on the City of Miami Commission is one too many.
That mailer was paid for by Proven Leadership for Miami, a PAC chaired by Miami River Commission Chairman Horacio Aguirre and used for the senior Regalado in his campaign for county property appraiser last year. So was the one sent this week that calls Rosado “a proven tax and spend bureaucrat” with a “documented history of incompetence and raising taxes.”
Will he or won’t he? Congressman Carlos Gimenez for Miami mayor?
And could his daughter-in-law run to succeed him?
The rumors are rampant. Will Congressman Carlos Gimenez run for city of Miami mayor?
While he is enjoying el protagonismo of the national limelight, with regular spots on cable news networks to bash Joe Biden and China or to gush over Elon Musk, Gimenez hasn’t been tapped by President Donald Trump for any ambassadorship or cabinet position. There was an expectation he would be. Some political observers said, months ago, that Gimenez pretty much had “carte blanche to choose” where he wanted to go. But he hasn’t gone anywhere. The DOGE task force doesn’t count. It was an afterthought.
Meanwhile, Marco Rubio gets not one, but two titles! Not just Secretary of State but national security advisor, too. Does he get both salaries (all tied up in one check, of course)?
And this, after Gimenez has stood solidly by Trump the entire time — still does — and has been rightfully blasted for being un lambón. Most recently, Gimenez has been among the targets of a billboard campaign that calls him out for abandoning his immigrant-rich community and acting as un servil to a dictator.
Read related: Video blasts U.S. Rep. Carlos Gimenez for silence on ending TPS, deportations
Could what might be seen as a snub have changed the congressman’s appetite for Washington?
Miami is so much closer to home and his wife and his kids and his grandkids. And it’s where he started his political career as a firefighter and later as city manager. Some people, including several close to him, say Gimenez — whose name has been included in a number of polls — wouldn’t mind coming full circle, especially if he can be cast as the one who saves Miami from the fiery depths of hell.
He would certainly become an instant frontrunner among the field of current candidates, which includes Miami-Dade Commissioner Eileen Higgins, former Miami Commissioner Ken Russell and former Miami City Manager Emilio Gonzalez, all of whom have opened campaign candidates and filed candidate oaths. Commissioner Joe Carollo and former Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla are campaigning, but have not yet filed any official paperwork. The deadline to qualify is in September.
People close to his family have said that Gimenez is, indeed, considering it and will make up his mind by June.
But, then again, there’s the certainty and longevity he enjoys now. Gimenez is a sure thing in his congressional district. He can rule there for life if he wants to. A Miami election would be a risk, even if a small one, and come with term limits. Of course, at the age of 70, term limits seem relative.
Read related: Miami-Dade Commissioner Eileen Higgins could join Miami Mayor’s race
There’s so much speculation about this, however, that the rumor mill has stretched into the musings of who might replace him. Some say that State Sen. Ana Maria Rodriguez is ready to step in. She seems the heir apparent. People know her. She served a term in the Florida House before becoming a senator in 2020 and she was a Doral council member before that. Her District 40 encompasses much of Gimenez’s District 28 (formerly the 26th). She’s practically a shoe in — and this is just a rumor.
Other possible hopefuls are State Rep. Juan Carlos Porras or Miami-Dade Commissioner Roberto Gonzalez, who is fresh off his far-right fluoride fight victory, getting his colleagues to override the county mayor’s veto of the removal of fluoride from the water, which is something he championed before the Florida Legislature passed its own statewide ban. But this is totally out of his league.
Both Sen. Ana Maria Rodriguez and campaign operative Tania Cruz Gimenez like to wear their sunglasses on their heads.
Another name whispered about — mostly in horror — is Tania Cruz-Gimenez, the super smart, former Democrat attorney turned Republican campaign consultant who just happens to be the daughter-in-law of the current congressman. Cruz-Gimenez, who lost a Coral Gables commission race in 2021, helped Miami-Dade Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz win the historic constitutional election last November with 56% of the vote, but lost last month with Claudia Miro, a Gables commission candidate that lost along with her in 2021 (Cruz Gimenez did better than Miro with 14% to 8% in a crowded field ultimately won by Gables Vice Mayor Rhonda Anderson).
She is now working with Denise Galvez Turros, a marketing professional and co-founder of Latinas for Trump, who is running for Miami Commission in District 3. Galvez Turros lost a bid for city commission in District 4 in 2017.
Read related: Denise Galvez Turros announces she’ll run for Miami Commission in District 3
In 2017, Cruz-Gimenez also helped Miami Commissioner Joe Carollo defend himself against a residency challenge from Alfie Leon, who lost the race by 252 votes, and essentially keep the seat he has since used repeatedly to abuse his office since. In 2020, she mounted a recall against Carollo, in part out of a guilty conscience, but that failed after the city contested it in court, saying they were filed hours late.
Cruz-Gimenez responded to Ladra in a text asking if I was crazy, with one of my favorite expletives thrown in. “Is that rumor really circling,” she asked, via text. Subsequent efforts to reach her about it have been unsuccessful.
So, that’s not a no.
And people think a potential run is why she so dramatically swore allegiance to the Republican Party with House Speaker Mike Johnson at a fundraiser in late February, where someone just happened to have a bible. Everyone laughed when she renounced the Democratic Party and swore “full support to the America First agenda and the seven core principles of conservatism.”
Those were listed out loud: “Individual liberty, limited government, rule of law, peace through strength, fiscal responsibility, free markets and human dignity.”
Really? Because at least six of the seven seem to be dismissed by our current POTUS. Maybe an argument could be made that he’s ignored all seven.
There were photos and video taken that could very easily find themselves on a mailer to voters or in TV ads. Giddily enjoying the performative moment next to her are the congressman, his wife and his namesake son, Carlos “CJ” Gimenez, who is married to Cruz-Gimenez and just does not make as good a candidate.
You don’t have to swear allegiance to anything or anyone when you switch parties from Democrat to Republican, or vice versa, as has been trending lately. The only reason to do go through such theatrics would be to raise your profile, and, perhaps, bank some campaign material.
But it would still be a tough primary against Rodriguez, even with an endorsement from the congressman. Or mayor of Miami.
The post Will he or won’t he? Congressman Carlos Gimenez for Miami mayor? appeared first on Political Cortadito.
