As expected, a plantidate in the Miami Lakes mayoral race has forced a runoff between Commissioner Josh Dieguez and Vice Mayor Tony Fernandez, who came out of Tuesday’s first round with 47% and 42%, respectively. Yuniett Gonzalez, a political newbie who had donated to Dieguez before jumping in the race — not a good sign for a candidate — got 11%.

We can expect Gonzalez to endorse Dieguez any day now, hoping to throw her 1,793 votes his way. There were only 731 votes difference between Dieguez and Fernandez in Tuesday’s results.

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Some voters in Miami Lakes got a long, rambling text message about the village mayoral election — but not from one of the candidates. It was from former Mayor Michael “Muscles” Pizzi , who recently got a $1.7 million settlement from the city for his defense costs in a federal bribery trial.

Vice Mayor Antonio “Tony” Fernandez, who is running to replace termed-out Mayor Manny Cid, voted against the settlement. And Pizzi is trying to make that seem like a bad decision.

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In what could seem like a hasty and behind-closed-doors decision, the Miami Lakes Council agreed to pay former Mayor Michael Pizzi — who was arrested in 2013 on federal bribery charges but acquitted a year later — for $1.7 million for the legal fees he incurred in his defense.

Wasn’t this supposed to come back for a hearing with public input?

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The runoff in the special election to fill a vacancy on the Miami Lakes Town Council was won by attorney Bryan Morera, but one could say that three council members also won Tuesday.

Morera, who took 57 percent against Esther Colon‘s 43 percent, had been endorsed and/or supported by council members Marilyn Ruano, Luis Collazo and Josh Dieguez. Both he and Colon, the former manager of Lauderdale-by-the-Sea who beat the supposed mayoral’s favorite candidate to get into the runoff, are longtime town activists who have served on a bunch of committees and the all important Blasting Advisory Board, which addresses the issue of the quarry blasting, which is probably the biggest issue in Miami Lakes (maybe tied with the 170th Street bridge and the taxing districts).

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Lawyer claims ethical violations in special election

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The two top building officials from the town of Miami Lakes resigned abruptly last month and some City Hall employees and town insiders say they were pushed out by political pressure and/or interference.

Building official Mike Mesa and Permits Director Lourdes Rodriguez both resigned from their positions in the wake of an ad hoc committee that was formed after a connected developer complained about citations he got.

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