You know who may not want Miami-Dade Commissioner Rene Garcia to be the next mayor of Hialeah? His longtime friend, lobbyist Terrence “TC” Wolfe. It could cost him $150,000.
Wolfe is president of the resource referral non-profit that Garcia founded, H.O.P.E. Mission, and a government consultant who works out of the same building as the commissioner’s district office — and has hundreds of thousands in municipal contracts.
That includes a $150,000 contract approved by the Hialeah Council in March with Wolfe’s firm, NCGA Inc., which stands for New Century Government Affairs (Garcia is vice president at a different firm called New Century Partnership). It is a $50,000-a-year contract for three years — actually $49,992, for a total of $149,976 — basically to rub elbows with electeds and push the city’s federal legislative priorities.
Isn’t that the mayor’s job? And wouldn’t it be a conflict of interest if Garcia became the mayor of the city that has a $150,000 with his BFF?
Garcia was pretty insulted when asked about the potential conflict of interest and told Political Cortadito that in 27 years in government — he began as a Hialeah councilman and was a house rep and a senator for eight years each — he has never been accused of any wrongdoing. Well, except for that paper bag he delivered to Hialeah boletera Deisy Cabrera after her 2012 arrest for collecting ballots for several candidates, which he said was a pan con bistec for the hungry old lady and not a cash payoff to keep her quiet.
Read related: Deisy Cabrera plea deal saves politicians tied to AB fraud
Furthermore, he intimated that perhaps Wolfe wouldn’t have that contract if Garcia were to be elected.
“I’m not the mayor of Hialeah now,” Garcia told Ladra. “If I were to become mayor, that could be revisited. We’re talking hypotheticals, but if you know me, you know I’m transparent.”
TC Wolfe and Rene Garcia last December at a H.O.P.E. Mission reception and awards event.
Wolfe also has a contract with Miami Lakes that won’t be at risk. The $5,000 monthly payment that expires next March was approved last month, with a bid waiver. But he’s been working for the town since 2023 and even helped Miami Lakes get its stand alone zip code — so it’s not confused with Hialeah — and at least $3 million in federal appropriations for the NW 59th Avenue project, Town Manager Edward Pidermann wrote in a memo April 15.
“NCGA has also assisted in the preparation of requests for new appropriations for the upcoming federal fiscal year,” Pidermann wrote, recommending an extension of the contract that would give Miami Lakes time to issue a request for proposals and open a competitive process, “while ensuring that the Town continues to receive the necessary federal support during this transition period without interruption.”
It’s probably just a coincidence that Miami Lakes’ newly elected Mayor Josh Dieguez, a longtime Garcia ally, is listed as a director of H.O.P.E. Mission in public records with the Florida Department of Corporations. (BTW: So is Jeanette Rubio, who Ladra thinks is Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s wife.)
Wolfe is a respected lobbyist that also has contracts with many school boards across the state. He advocates for education and real estate interests. With an office in DC, Wolfe lobbied the U.S. House and Senate in 2023 on behalf of the Association of Builders and Contractors’ Florida East Coast Chapter.
He is politically active, but just a little bit. According to multiple records, he has donated to a number of Republican campaigns across the state and to Maggie’s List, a federal political action committee founded in Florida in 2010 to get conservative women elected.
Read related: Hialeah Mayor Steve Bovo exits with pension, names Rene Garcia ‘successor’
There’s been a lot of attention lately to the $10 million in Medicaid settlement money that was diverted to (read: stolen by) The HOPE Florida Foundation, the non-profit which aims to get Floridians off public assistance, run by Casey DeSantis, the governor’s wife, who is still mulling a possible run to succeed him. Like this was a kingdom. Turns out that the non-profit then gave the money to two different political action committees that fought the legalization of marijuana last year.
Turns out, one of the PACs was run by James Uthmeier, who was also chief of staff to Ron DeSantis at the time and appointed earlier this year to attorney general.
It’s only natural to wonder if our local H.O.P.E. — it is a word used in a lot of non-profits — is also a conduit for funds to political committees or candidates. But it’s financial records show that it operates on a much smaller scale.
H.O.P.E. Mission reported almost $138,000 in revenue in 2023 and spent just over $52,000 in wages, according to ProPublica. According to an IRS filing of the 990 form, for tax-exempt organizations, the year before, in 2022, H.O.P.E. Mission reported a total of “contributions an grants” of $186,524 and wages of $45,767. The document expresses that the non-profit also had other expenses totaling $109,000 in 2022 and $85,790 in 2023, itemized as meals, rent, events (probably including backpacks and school supplies for distribution in August) and contracts.
Nothing reported to PACs.
Over the course of five years, from 2019 to 2023, H.O.P.E. Mission reported getting $648,846 in grants and contributions. Ladra was unable to find any IRS filings or financial reporting for 2024.
H.O.P.E. Mission’s address is in Hialeah, in the same building where Garcia has his District 13 office. Garcia also had his district state senate office in that building and Esteban “Steve” Bovo, who just stepped down as mayor of Hialeah to go lobby in D.C., had his office there when he was the county commissioner in that district.
It’s also the address for Wolfe’s consulting firm.
Cozy.
Former Hialeah Councilman Bryan Calvo has suggested that Garcia, if elected, will “continue covering up years of wasteful spending,” which he said includes this “shady $150,000 consulting contract handed to a close friend with zero transparency.
“This is how they do business — taking care of themselves while Hialeah families struggle to make ends meet,” Calvo wrote in an email to voters after Garcia announced.
But Garcia said Calvo is making baseless accusations because he has no track record to run on.
He said Calvo is “an immature child” who “has nothing on me,” so he has to make things up. Calvo’s claim to fame, suing the city to get the 911 records and claiming issues with response times, was a political stunt simply to go against Bovo, Garcia said. “Is narcissist behavior caused an unnecessary panic in the city of Hialeah.
“I have always been very clear and transparent about how I do my job, since I’ve been in the legislature,” Garcia said, sending hurt that it would even cross Ladra’s mind that he would grease the wheels to help a friend. He said he resigned from the H.O.P.E. board “for that reason, to avoid any conflict.
“You can never question my integrity,” Garcia said. “Everything I’ve done in the public arena is in the interest of the people who I serve.”
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Miami-Dade Commissioner Rene Garcia filed paperwork earlier this month to run for mayor in Hialeah, after Esteban “Steve” Bovo announced that he was leaving for a Washington, D.C., lobbying gig. But is Garcia really running?
He didn’t have a press conference to announce his candidacy. There is no announcement post on any of his social media. Garcia filed quietly and without any fanfare — on April Fool’s Day, no less. He’s always had a sly sense of humor. He has also told people and the media that he is not 100% in, and has until qualifying in July to make up his mind.
His campaign is so non-existent that Bovo went on La Poderosa last week, eight days after Garcia filed his paperwork, to say he hoped to persuade Garcia to step up and run for mayor. Like he didn’t know he had already?
Many political observers say this is a ruse and that Garcia does not intend to resign his county commission seat. They say he’s just doing longtime ally Bovo a solid by freezing out the mayor’s sworn enemy, former Councilman Bryan Calvo, with the mere possibility he’s going to run. Garcia, who started his career as a Hialeah council member and went on to serve in the Florida Senate, would easily and immediately be the frontrunner. Anyone who might have donated to Calvo’s campaign might now think twice about that.
It would also discourage any other potential candidates from running for the seat. Already Council Member Jesus Tundidor, who had been a potential mayoral candidate before Garcia barely jumped in, filed paperwork — three days after Garcia did — for the commission seat in District 13 instead. But is he really going to run for county commissioner?
Read related: Hialeah Mayor Steve Bovo exits with pension, names Rene Garcia ‘successor’
Because observers also say that Tundidor could switch with Garcia in July, and step into the mayoral race. The other possibility is that Bovo and his camp support a run by Jacqueline Garcia-Roves, who was council president and is now interim acting mayor. Or someone else altogether. Commissioner Carl Zogby has also expressed interest.
Maybe Rene Garcia’s candidacy is designed to give Bovo and his clan the next two and half months to decide what happens.
But Tundidor’s political action committee, Stronger United, raised $210,000 in the first quarter of this year, according to the campaign finance reports recording transactions from Jan. 1 to the end of March — which was before Garcia filed for Hialeah mayor and before Tundidor filed for county commission. So those donations — which include $25,000 from real estate developer Michaeld Wohl and $10,000 from All American Amusements, a maquinita company that also supported former Mayor Julio Robaina — were most likely for a mayoral campaign. And there’s no way they didn’t happen without Bovo’s okay.
And the bulk of the contributions came on March 11, which was more than a month after the rumors of Bovo’s impending departure were published in the Miami Herald.
“It wouldn’t surprise me one way or another. When it comes to Hialeah, anything is on the table,” said Calvo, who resigned his seat to run for Miami-Dade tax collector last year and lost the Republican primary to Dariel Fernandez. Calvo has also heard the rumors of the ghost candidacy, but said he is not changing his campaign in any way.
“It doesn’t matter. I’m running regardless of who it is against.”
Sen. Garcia told Political Cortadito Thursday that his candidacy was not a political maneuver. “I am considering it seriously” he said, adding that he is “talking to residents and trying to figure it out where I best serve.” The response so far? “Honestly, it’s a mixed bag.”
Read related: Bryan Calvo becomes first candidate to file for November Hialeah mayor’s race
Some people have said they want him to run and others have said that they want him and need him to stay at the county. “That weighs heavily on me,” Garcia said, adding that he’d also be the third county commissioner to step off the dais this year. District 5 Commissioner Eileen Higgins announced earlier this month — the day after Garcia filed for the Hialeah race — that she was running for Miami mayor and District 6 Commissioner Kevin Cabrera, or rather former District 6 commissioner Cabrera, resigned this week and was sworn in as U.S. Ambassador to Panama.
“If I leave, that’s three new seats on the commission,” said Garcia, who was automatically re-elected last year with no opposition. “I made a commitment to serve for four years.” And he’s doing some important work, he added.
“My priority has always been Northwest Dade,” Garcia said. “That’s the quagmire.”
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Former Councilman Bryan Calvo blasts Bovo’s last acts
As expected, Hialeah Mayor Steve Bovo is leaving the city for a job as a lobbyist in Washington, DC. The Miami Herald, which first broke the news about the rumored move in January, reported earlier this month that he is following his wife, Viviana Bovo, who has been a longtime right hand for Marco Rubio, from the Florida House to the Senate and now the State Department.
Bovo’s office said he would be stepping down from Hialeah’s top post in April. Las malas lenguas say he’s going to be making more than $190,000 in salary and paid expenses.
But it’s never enough.
One of Bovo’s last acts as mayor was to make sure he got a cushy “deferred compensation plan,” which is a fancy, legal way to get around saying pension, retroactively, for himself and other Hialeah electeds. He got it passed unanimously by the still Seguro Que Yes council earlier this month.
Read related: Steve Bovo’s parting gift: Retirement benefits for himself, Hialeah electeds
Bovo has also suggested he would support Miami-Dade Commissioner Rene Garcia in the November election. Garcia, who did not return calls and texts from Ladra, has said in the past that he would not speculate about stepping down to run for Hialeah mayor until Bovo announced his departure officially. Wellllll?
Former Council Member Bryan Calvo — who filed to run in February, immediately after the rumors were first reported — blasted Bovo in an email to voters titled “Hialeah deserves better than corrupt politicians who take care of themselves while raising your taxes.” Calvo says the calculated vote for the taxpayer-funded pension was deliberately timed by Bovo with full knowledge he would be leaving.

“Now, he’s cashing out and heading to Washington, D.C., to take a lobbying job. Yes, the same Steve Bovo who raised your taxes and increased your water bill is now walking away with your money in his pocket,” the email says.
Calvo also suggests that Garcia will “protect Bovo’s pension and continue covering up years of wasteful spending.” He cites a “shady $150,000 consulting contract handed to a close friend with zero transparency.”
This is a $50,000 a year contract for three years — actually $49,992, for a total of $149,976 — approved the same day as the pensions for a lobbyist named Terrence “TC” Wolfe, Garcia’s “close friend,”and his firm, New Century Government Affairs. The services provided are basically to rub elbows with electeds and push the city’s federal legislative priorities. With an office in DC, Wolfe lobbied the U.S. House and Senate in 2023 on behalf of the Association of Builders and Contractors’ Florida East Coast Chapter.
Wolfe is also president at H.O.P.E. Mission Inc., the same non-profit resources referral agency (reported $138,000 in revenue in 2023, according to ProPublica) founded by Commissioner Garcia, who has served as chair and treasurer, and who has remained involved with the organization through book bag giveaways and food distributions, along with other events. Last December (photo, left), HOPE Mission had a reception and awards event.
Miami Lakes’ newly elected Mayor Josh Dieguez, a longtime Garcia ally, is listed as a director in public records with the Florida Department of Corporations.
“This is how they do business — taking care of themselves while Hialeah families struggle to make ends meet,” Calvo boldly writes in the email. “Hialeah is being looted in broad daylight, and these career politicians think they can get away with it.
Read related: Bryan Calvo becomes first candidate to file for November Hialeah mayor’s race
“As your former councilman, I fought against corruption. I fought to lower your taxes, fix our water problems without raising your bill, and make our city safer. Now, I’m running for mayor to clean up the mess these insiders have made and put Hialeah back in the hands of its people.
“This election is about one simple question: Do you want more of the same corrupt, backroom deals? Or do you want a mayor who fights for YOU? This November, it’s time to take our city back.
“Let’s drain the Hialeah swamp and restore integrity to City Hall.”
With a swamp that deep and wide, he’s going to have to do more than win just one race.
The post Hialeah Mayor Steve Bovo exits with pension, names Rene Garcia ‘successor’ appeared first on Political Cortadito.

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Free testing available at County Hall next week
We’re No. 1! But we probably don’t want to be this time.
Miami-Dade is the nation’s leader in new HIV cases reported every year, according to the Center for Disease Control.  In fact, the county has had the highest annual rate of newly diagnosed HIV infections of all cities and counties in the United States monitored by the CDC since at least 2017 (42.9 cases per 100 000 residents back then). According to the Florida Department of Health, one in 82 adults in Miami-Dade County were known to be living with HIV in 2022.
This week, the Miami-Dade County Commission instructed the mayor to apply for up to $73.4 million in federal grants to test and treat people for and with HIV.
“Miami-Dade County once again leads the nation in new HIV cases,” said Commissioner Rene Garcia, who has been working to bring the number of HIV cases down for years, since his days in the state senate. “I think it’s important for us as a board to come together and the community to come together to see how we confront this epidemic once again in our community.”
Garcia told his colleagues on Tuesday that black and Hispanic women are the ones who are currently most affected and that he is going to work on some kind of awareness program through the healthcare community.
“We need to do a lot better job in making sure our people are tested and get them treatment,” Garcia said.

The resolution approved Tuesday retroactively authorizes the county mayor or her designee to apply for a combined total of up to $73,402,688 in Ending the HIV Epidemic Initiative (EHE) funds from the United States Department of Health and Human Services Health Resources and Services Administration (HHS) and expend them during a five year period from March 1 this year through Feb. 28, 2030. The funds would address Pillar Two (treat people with HIV rapidly and effectively to reach sustained viral suppression) and Pillar Four (respond quickly to potential HIV outbreaks to get prevention and treatment services to people who need them) of this initiative, according to the memo attached to the resolution.
At the same time, the commission approved the authorization of a one-year extension of existing contracts providing services already “in anticipation of this grant award” to “ensure that client services are not unnecessarily disrupted while a new RFP can be developed.”

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With Hialeah Mayor Esteban “Steve” Bovo‘s pending departure from public service to become a Washington D.C. lobbyist — because his relationship with Secretary of State Marco Rubio is suddenly very valuable — there is wide speculation about who might run for the post this year now that it’s become an open seat.
Council President Jacqueline Garcia-Roves will serve as interim mayor until November — which Ladra bets nobody thought about when they made her council president. She is the first female mayor in the City of Progress. But not for long. Nobody expects her to run for the permanent job.
Former Councilman Bryan Calvo — who resigned to run for tax collector, losing in the Republican primary to Dariel Fernandez, who went on to win the general — has become the first candidate to jump into the race. City Clerk Marbelys Fatjo confirmed Thursday that Calvo had submitted an “Appointment of Campaign Treasurer and Designation of Campaign Depository for Candidates form designating Mayor as the Office Sought.”
Other potentials that have been mentioned are Miami-Dade Commissioner Rene Garcia and Hialeah Councilman Jesus Tundidor. Either or, but not both, because Tundidor will likely run for county commission in District 13 if Garcia runs for mayor.
Garcia did not return calls from Political Cortadito, but he told the Miami Herald, which first reported Bovo’s move, that he was in a wait and see mode. “Until I hear from Steve Bovo directly on what he is or isn’t doing, there’s no point in me discussing what I may or may not be doing,” Garcia is quoted as saying.
Many observers say he’d be an immediate front runner.
Longtime campaign consultant and former Hialeah Absentee Ballot Queen Sasha Tirador — who now dedicates herself to a podcast called The Sasha View (with 6.8K subscribers!) — thinks it is highly likely that Garcia, a former state senator, gets in.
“No one remembers county commissioners. Nobody remembers state legislators,” Tirador told Political Cortadito. “This is the time to set his legacy.
“He loves the city. He hates injustices and he loves Hialeah,” Tirador added. “This is the city he grew up in.
“Rene Garcia is an old school politician. And old school politicians care about legacy,” she said.
She also called Calvo a “clown.”
Calvo, who is likely to cast himself as the anti-Bovo candidate, told Political Cortadito that although he lost the Republican primary for tax collector last August, he won in all the Hialeah precincts. “And this was with Steve Bovo sending out mailers and radio adds endorsing my opponent.
“Obviously, it still didn’t make up for other places in the county, but it shows that what I’ve done for three years as councilman resonated with the people.
“I have a track record,” Calvo said.
Read related: Hialeah mayor, councilman clash over tax collector election endorsement
That includes voting against water increases and taxes and getting into an infamous fight with Bovo over the city’s 911 response time. In 2023, Calvo sued Bovo to get records from the beleaguered 911 center (it was dismissed in January of last year).
The deadline to qualify for the Hialeah Nov. 4 election is 5 p.m. Monday, July 28.
If Garcia jumps to Hialeah, the District 13 seat becomes open and there will likely be a special election to fill it. As Ladra said earlier, Tundidor might go for that. But he won’t be alone. Las malas lenguas say that State Rep. Alex Rizo and Miami-Dade School Board Member Roberto Alonso are possibilities. Either, or, because both are represented by David Custin, the political consultant who represents Bovo.
There is also a promised upcoming special election to replace Miami-Dade Commmissioner Kevin Cabrera, who should shortly be approved as the U.S. Ambassador to Panama. State Sen. Bryan Avila is said to be eyeing that one, but so is West Miami Mayor Eric Diaz-Padron, West Miami Vice Mayor Natalie Milian Orbis –who happens to be wife of Cabrera’s office Chief of Staff Manuel Orbis — and Francisco Petrirena, who is the director of the city of Miami’s government relations department.
Let the dominos fall where they may.
 
The post Bryan Calvo becomes first candidate to file for November Hialeah mayor’s race appeared first on Political Cortadito.

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Earlier this year, the Florida Legislature made significant changes to condominium laws to enhance the safety, financial transparency and governance of condo associations. These new changes, signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis, were mostly in response to the tragic 2021 collapse of the 12-story Champlain Towers South in Surfside, which caused the deaths of 98 people.

These changes — which include stricter qualifications for and accountability from board members — have been the topic of radio shows and podcasts. Several elected officials have had public forums for the community to discuss the consequences and provisions of these laws. Now it’s Miami-Dade Commissioner Rene Garcia‘s turn.

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