Part of a series of profiles about the Miami mayoral candidates
Former Miami City Commissioner Ken Russell wants Miami voters to give him another go — this time in the mayor’s chair.
The same Ken Russell who once stood out for his clean-cut idealism and YouTube-friendly optimism when he joined the commission in 2015, now promises to “take out the garbage” at City Hall. If voters can forgive him for leaving early in 2022 to run for higher office.
Russell says Miami is broken — corrupt, disconnected, unaffordable — and that he’s the one who can fix it. His campaign pitch is all about “courage, character, and community,” and he’s playing the reform card hard: expand the commission, cap term limits, clean up the back-room deals and bring residents back into the process.
He’s the candidate talking about affordable housing like it’s personal. On the dais, he pushed for co-living and inclusionary zoning — ideas that tried to make room for regular working people in a city built for millionaires. The problem is, they never really took off. His zoning fixes were pre-empted by Tallahassee and his housing ideas ran into developer pushback. It’s a nice theory. Not much of it became reality.
Still, Russell likes to show receipts. He passed an environmental ordinance to limit fertilizer runoff into Biscayne Bay and was the only commissioner who voted against criminalizing feeding the homeless. That independence has earned him some respect — and some enemies.
The 52-year-old former yo-yo champ (yes, that’s true) has been chasing bigger stages for years. He toyed around with congressional seat once but withdrew, and running against then-Sen. Marco Rubio before he left his commission seat early to run for Congress for reals, just to lose in the primary to Annette Taddeo. Now he’s back home trying to convince voters he’s focused on Miami again, and not still trying to use it as a stepping stone to a larger stage.
Read related: Ken Russell qualifies for November Miami mayoral race; ADLP dips one toe
On the debate stage, Russell has looked sharp and steady — no gaffes, no real sputters. But he had plenty of jabs and zingers. He comes off as the grown-up in a crowded field of candidates yelling over each other. He talks policy, but he’s also shown that he’s not afraid to throw punches. Translation: He’s not as bland as he looks.
And his performance has earned him a spike in the polls.
Plus, he is probably the only candidate who has been out knocking on doors for three hours every day for months. He says he’s going to knock on his 2,000th door this week and walk his 100th mile — ala Lawton Chiles.
That said, he is pretty much the male version of Miami-Dade Commissioner Eileen Higgins, who is one of the 13 running for the mayor’s post and has consistently been leading the polls. The two big Democrats in the non-partisan race (yeah, right) are competing for a lot of the same environmental-friendly, socially-conscious, or otherwise “woke” votes.
A big difference is that Higgins has way more money — $813,000 collected in her campaign account and her political action committee, compared to a total of $184,000 for both Russell’s campaign account and his PAC. She has the campaign machinery. She also has the endorsement of Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, who is out there campaigning with Higgins at events in what seems like a bit too much back scratching (more on that later).
Meanwhile, Russell has the backing of “two of the most environmental mayors in Miami-Dade,” in former South Miami Mayor Phil Stoddard and former Pinecrest Mayor Cindy Lerner. But Ladra’s nose is twitching because these greenies come with a bit of a stench.
Stoddard’s past includes a bizarre burglary episode in which police found him stark naked at home with teenage foreign student and accusations of police misreporting, and Lerner, who is a defender of open space and transit, lost two county commission races in a row and has been accused of steering no-bid deals to relatives without disclosure. Hardly the kind of squeaky-clean champions Russell needs when he’s fighting for votes in neighborhoods that care about trust. Russell may be banking on their name-brand heft among environmental voters. But the risk is real: his opponents can package these endorsements not as badges of purity, but as proof he builds his coalition on flawed foot soldiers.
Another big difference is that Russell has amassed a sizable following online, posting slick, sometimes quirky TikToks and reels aimed at younger voters. He’s got 22,400 followers on Instagram, where Higgins has 5,255, and a whopping 413,600 followers on TikTok, plus 15.5 million likes. Higgins is not on TikTok. Unless she’s in one of his videos.
So, Russell may have mastered socials, but the question is whether that translates into turnout. Other candidates have tried to use it against him, calling him the selfie boy and mocking his online presence. They’re just jealous.
What Miami gets with Russell is someone who knows City Hall inside out — and who might actually try to clean it. His record shows good intentions that don’t always survive contact with political reality. He’s not corrupt, not flashy, and not particularly connected to the old machine — which makes him both refreshing and an underdog.
But he has one big stain: Russell was the critical swing vote when the city commission approved the 99-year lease for the site of the former Melreese Golf Course for the future Miami Freedom Park real estate boondoggle dressed up as a soccer stadium. In the lead-up to the vote, Russell insisted on specific concessions: wage minimum and full cost cleanup of the toxic ash-laden site. After the deal passed, Russell faced criticism (and possibly some regret) for his “about-face” on the vote. It’s hard to live that down.
Read related: Ken Russell’s about face on Miami Freedom Park vote seals political fate
Then after the developers, led by Jorge Mas and Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, went to the city to go back on a clause that he incited on to use $20 million in public benefit funding for the Freedom Park space — rather than to acquire other parks throughout the city, as Russell intended — he called it a “bait and switch.”
He has been criticized as ineffective as a commissioner, but says he can do more as mayor, where he can direct policy and surround himself with people who will help him fulfill his vision.
Ladra thinks Russell means what he says. But Miami politics eats idealists for breakfast. If he’s going to win, he’ll need more than courage and character. He’ll need a city ready to believe that honest can still work.
Ken Russell comes with a biography that reads more like a film than a standard political résumé. His father was a yo-yo champion with international ties; his mother, Japan’s national yo-yo champion. He, in turn, spent years competing and traveling in the yo-yo world himself. He went to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, earned a B.S. in Business Administration, then stepped into the family business, and later opened a watersports store.
After he left office, he opened a consulting firm and worked for the Sierra Club — until Higgins got him fired.
His entrance into politics? A story of a dad refusing to wait. When he learned that the park where his kids played had become contaminated and the city drifted on action, he organized neighbors, demanded change, and got the job done. He uses that origin point to signal he isn’t a career politician — he’s a citizen-turned-public-servant.
In 2015, he won the race for District 2 on the City of Miami Commission (covering Coconut Grove, Brickell, Downtown, Edgewater) and served until December 2022, leaving early in a hissy fit protest after the dysfunctional commission cancelled the December meeting sorta as a last jab to him.
And he’s used the mayoral race to jab back, saying “at least I didn’t leave in handcuffs” to former Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla, who was arrested in September 2023 on 14 public corruption charges including bribery and money laundering that were dropped more than a year later, and criticizing the amount of taxpayer money Commissioner Joe Carollo has wasted defending himself from lawsuits about his abuse of power.
Read related: Miami Commission cuts Ken Russell’s last meeting; he threatens to quit early
But he also has some heft. The key pillars of his campaign are:

Anti-corruption and transparency: In his announcement: “Corruption in Miami isn’t just an open secret — it’s a way of doing business.” He pledges to “take out the garbage at City Hall.”
Affordable housing and inclusive growth: He carries his own commission record (co-living zones, inclusionary zoning) into the campaign as proof that he knows housing is the challenge.
Resilience and neighborhood-first infrastructure: He frames the mayor’s job as coordinating all of Miami’s multiple crises — housing, climate, infrastructure — and reconnecting the city’s many neighborhoods rather than letting growth displace residents.
Governance reform: He wants to chair the commission himself (rather than appointing a peer), expand the size of the commission from 5 to 7 or 9 seats, shift city elections to even years (higher turnout), and implement lifetime term-limits. That’s structural change, not just policy.

That crisply defined platform — not just “help housing” but “governance reform + anti-corruption + housing + resilience” — joins his other strengths, which include a compelling personal story as an entrepreneur, activist, outsider who turned public servant, a visible and modern, digital-savvy, campaign and a credible record from his commission days, where he passed a water-quality ordinance to reduce fertilizer pollution and worked on co-living spaces and inclusionary zoning.
Russell leans into his “outsider who got things done” narrative. He vacuums in his past: the contaminated park, the grassroots mobilization, the yo-yo entrepreneur turned city commissioner. He uses that to signal authenticity (“I’m like your neighbour”) and competence (he’s done the actual job, passed ordinances). His campaign website emphasizes this: “From your next-door neighbor to Miami’s next Mayor.”
But he has his weaknesses, too. The congressional and short-lived Senate campaigns that ended in failure could be cast as “ambition without results,” and some of his signature policies are pre-empted by state law, which may raise questions of how much he can actually deliver given state-local constraint. And, of course, Melreese.
In a crowded field of 13 candidates, standing out is hard even for someone with Russell’s credentials. While he has been included in the most recent debate, which only had candidates that polled over 10%, Russell is still seen as the tail of the front-running pack, which includes Higgins, former City Manager Emilio González and, unbelievably, Carollo.
Russell represents a kind of “next generation” of Miami politics — not the old dynamic of political dynasties, not the purely developer-driven model, but someone who combines activism, private-sector experience, and municipal governance. He has cast himself as the one to build a city that doesn’t leave people behind, that rewires the system instead of just adding towers.
But the question remains: will the voters buy the story of system-cleaner and reformer in a city long comfortable with insiders and old networks? Will he move beyond housing talk and governance reform into delivering measurable difference? Will his digital savvy translate into real votes?
Russell’s path to victory is: win the progressive & reform-souled vote, consolidate that base, make housing his visceral promise, and become the “governance change” candidate. If he falters, it’ll be when the message gets too abstract or the opposition frames him as “another politician with promises”.
The post Ken Russell wants another shot at Miami City Hall — as mayor this time appeared first on Political Cortadito.

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Part of a series of profiles about the Miami mayoral candidates
No, he’s not close to “Uncle Ron,” as he calls him — and Kenneth James DeSantis makes sure to clear that up right away.
The young attorney, relative to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis — who is not affiliated with either the Republican or the Democratic parties — is one of 13 candidates running for Miami mayor on Nov. 4. And while the name might turn heads — he admits his grandmother gets preferential treatment at the hospital — his pitch is more about integrity than notoriety.
“I’m running for mayor because Miami is at a turning point,” DeSantis, a distant cousin of the governor’s, wrote the Miami Herald, in an answer to candidate questions that city commissioner Joe Carollo and former City Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla did not respond to.
“We deserve leadership free of corruption and bold enough to build a fairer, safer and more resilient city.”
Sounds nice. Lofty, even. Especially in a city where corruption, favoritism and backroom deals are practically part of the municipal DNA. But DeSantis, who lives on the west side of the city near Coral Gables, says he wants to bring “fresh leadership and a lifelong commitment to justice” to Miami — which is a polite way of saying City Hall could use a good scrubbing.
Read related: Miami election surprise: A Ron DeSantis relative files to run for mayor
“Miami deserves a City Hall that is free from corruption and it hasn’t had that for generations,” he
“I got into the race once I learned all the shenanigans that were going on in City Hall and I realized that just coming I there and being transparent and open and honest would be a better situation than we have right now,” he told WPLG Channel 10 in a short interview this week. He criticized Mayor Francis Suarez for not disclosing his client list and said he “would never.” He also said that he would work to put all the city’s contract and spending online for everyone to see.
“I tried to audit some things I’m supposed to be talking about right now and couldn’t find certain things,” he said. “Sunlight is the best disinfectant.”
He’s not great at affordable housing, which seems to be the issue everybody wants to talk about. He says the problem cannot be handled at the city level alone, except when keeping taxes low and protecting existing affordable housing. He also says developers need to be pressed more to create housing for every income level. But the first thing he’d tackle — as someone who just redid his bathroom and did not have fun doing it — is a reform of the permitting process.
DeSantis was also incredibly human-like when it comes to the issue of homelessness and said they need empathy. “We are all just one car accident away from being in that position,” he said. “That could be you.”
It’s a stark contrast to his cousin’s stance. Gov. DeSantis signed a bill last year that prohibits camping or sleeping on public property, which cleared the way for many police departments to start arresting homeless people for just being homeless.
KJ DeSantis is a relative newcomer to politics — and Miami. He still has an upper New York area code, but said he’s fallen in love with the city. He’s also relatively new to the law.
Admitted to the Florida Bar in 2022, he works as an associate at the Cole, Scott & Kissane law firm in Dadeland, mostly representing small businesses and individuals. He’s also a member of the Florida Bar’s Aviation Law Committee through 2030, which shows a certain commitment to bureaucracy if nothing else.
The University of Richmond School of Law grad also has degrees from Vanderbilt University and the University of Cambridge — so he’s got the credentials. Or he just likes academia.
Read related: Christian Cevallos: Immigrant builder runs for Miami mayor to audit City Hall
What he doesn’t seem to have yet is a campaign machine. There’s no sign of social media presence or even yard signs. He hasn’t raised more than $2,840 as of his last campaign report. He may be running on principle alone. Oh, and that name. Some political observers speculate that he’s a plantidate, there to strip away GOP votes from someone, maybe former City Manager Emilio González, who actually has the governor’s endorsement.
But DeSantis says he’s focused on the issues Miamians actually live with every day: safety, traffic, flooding and the cost of living. His website is pretty thorough and hints at a future run, with “building a movement” language. Ladra loves his logo — with a flamingo riding (or pooping out) a lightning bolt. And you can even buy a “DeSantis For Miami” tote bag for $50.
If that’s how he’s going to handle business at the city, it doesn’t look good.
“The most pressing issue is creating safer neighborhoods, reducing traffic through better transit options, and fostering real economic growth that lifts Miamians’ incomes and prosperity,” he told The Herald. “Addressing these together will strengthen quality of life and opportunity across our community.”
That’s a tall order — and maybe a little idealistic and refreshing to hear someone talking about systems, fairness and transparency instead of photo ops and power plays. Whether that message breaks through all the ugly noise in crowded field and is another question. Ladra will bet it does not.
He joins a clown car of 13 candidates vying to replace term-limited Mayor Francis Suarez — a lineup that includes Gonzalez and other big names like City Commissioner Joe Carollo, former Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla, former Commissioner Ken Russell, Miami-Dade Commissioner Eileen Higgins and former Miami-Dade Commissioner Mayor Sir Xavier Suarez, who held the seat in 1995 and wants to succeed his son in what he calls an “inverse dynasty.”
DeSantis got to see them interact at the Downtown Neighbors Alliance debate last month — he didn’t poll over 5%, so he wasn’t invited — as he sat in the audience. He was unimpressed.
“What struck me most was how much of a circus it became rom beginning to end,” he told Ladra after the debate. “From a group of of supposedly seasoned candidates, I expected more statesmanship and sharper debate skills. Some couldn’t even deliver a coherent closing statement.
“There was a clear lack of decorum and seriousness,” he said, like a man who has never been to a city commission meeting.
It is apparent that he is getting a quick education in Miami politics. He knows he’s not going to win — but it’s good practice for a future run

Help Ladra keep bringing you deep coverage of the Miami election you can’t get anywhere else with a contribution to Political Cortadito. Click here. And thank you for your support of independent, watchdog journalism.

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Oh look, Lennar is back to nibble away at the Urban Development Boundary — again.
The Miami-Dade based developing giant — second largest homebuilder in the U.S. — has dusted off an old West Kendall land grab and this time, they brought friends and fresh asphalt.
After more than a decade of keeping this mega-development dream on ice, Lennar Corp., along with old-school Miami developer Edward Easton and a mystery crew from Boca Raton called Guherqui International, have filed new plans to push the UDB west and take 960 acres of farmland to build what they’re calling “City Park.”
Because “City Sprawl” didn’t test well with focus groups.
The monster $2 billion project — which is a lot more “city” than “park” — has been in the works for more than a year and officially filed its application with the county earlier this month. This would be the biggest UDB expansion request in years. It’s massive: 7,800 homes — mostly single-family — 1.5 million square feet of commercial space, 249 acres of lakeside beaches and green space, and a couple charter schools sprinkled in like parsley.
There’s even a 10-acre “community farm” in the site plan, which is a cute way of saying, “We’re totally not paving over farmland! We promise!”
They also promise to have almost 1,000 “workforce units” and create at least 13,000 “permanent” jobs.
Read related: Miami-Dade: Lennar wants to build 138 homes on 20 acres of rural South Dade
Like any UDB expansion bid, it requires a supermajority vote from the Miami-Dade County Commission — meaning seven out of 13 commissioners would have to sign off on moving the county’s urban footprint even closer to the edge of the Everglades. Developers said they probably wouldn’t go before the commission for another 14 months, which tells Ladra they’re counting votes — remember, half the commission is up for election next year — and trying to soften public resistance with lots of PR about “affordable housing” and “smart growth.”
The 960 acres of farmland sits between SW 136th and 152nd Streets and SW 162nd and 177th Avenues, just east of Krome Avenue, and has been zoned agricultural since, well, probably forever. But the heart of “City Park” is something developers call “the village core,” described as a mixed-use complex for entertainment, cultural programming, stores and restaurants with public spaces “that are designed to create one-of-a-kind experiences to foster strong social connections for residents and visitors.”
And sure, the Dolphin Expressway (836) is being extended into West Kendall. That was approved by the Greater Miami Expressway Authority — aka another public agency that loves ribbon-cuttings and hates wetlands. But a new highway doesn’t mean we need a whole city built next to it. That’s like putting in a fire hydrant and then inviting arsonists.
Lennar’s team says the development will include walking paths, its own fire rescue station, and plenty of green space. But we’ve seen this game before — big glossy renderings, sustainable buzzwords, and promises of infrastructure to come. Then the asphalt pours, the traffic piles up, the schools overflow, and taxpayers are left to clean up the mess.
Developers say this will be a sustainable community that will ease traffic because residents won’t have to drive east for work or shopping. Ladra can hear the snickers from Kendall commuters already. They say that to justify the biggest, boldest push yet to breach the UDB. They  say it’s the only site big enough to deliver what West Kendall “has been missing” — jobs, entertainment, and tax revenue.
Sure, and the last dozen UDB applications said the same thing before them.
Read related: Miami-Dade Commission approves 700 homes on 90 acres of mostly farmland
And let’s be real: There are multiple UDB expansion proposals pending right now as developers race to get their slice of South Florida’s last remaining open space. And the same commission that says “we need to be cautious about sprawl” is also handing out zoning changes like cafecito at Versailles.
Ladra says keep your eyes on who supports this. Who starts talking about “housing shortages” and “balanced development.” Who suddenly gets campaign donations from builders, consultants, and every LLC with a PO Box on Brickell.
Because this isn’t just another neighborhood. It’s a test. This isn’t just about 960 acres of farmland. It’s about whether Miami-Dade is willing to draw the line — or let Lennar erase it.
If they can expand the UDB for 7,800 homes in West Kendall, what’s next? A tech city by the Everglades? A private spaceport in the Redland? Don’t laugh — with the right lobbyist, anything’s possible in Miami-Dade.

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Part of a series of profiles about the Miami mayoral candidates
If there’s one candidate in Miami’s crowded mayoral race who can say “ni hao” with authority, it’s Elijah John Bowdre — a trilingual tech entrepreneur, global traveler, and local advocate who wants to turn Miami into a high-efficiency, low-cost, tech-driven paradise.
He’s just super short on the details.
Bowdre, who lives in Edgewater, is one of the 13 people running for mayor of Miami on Nov. 4. A Florida A&M University graduate with a study-abroad certification from Shanghai University, he says he spent nearly eight years living in China, where he says he helped attract a $500 million investment from Hong Kong into downtown Miami.
He could not provide details. Twice when Ladra called him he sounded like he was on a movie set, so much conversation in the background, and he would said he would call me back. He never did.
Read related: Alyssa Crocker: mother, advocate, fighter — and Miami mayoral candidate
But Bowdre has no Chinese investors — or any investors, really, in his mayoral bid. His latest campaign finance report shows he has loaned himself $1,650 and got another $250 from a friend in Conyers, Georgia.
The lack of money doesn’t seem to hurt his swagger. Bowdre, who says he speaks Spanish and Mandarin also, has a LinkedIn-style pitch that reads like a cross between Silicon Valley and the United Nations — global vision, local roots, and a digital twist.
Bowdre is running for mayor because too many Miamians are working “two or three jobs and sleeping in their cars,” he told WPLG Local 10. His solution? Harness what he calls “the money power in tech.” He wants to use technology to deliver subsidies, rebates, stipends, and bonuses to residents — what sounds like a high-tech redistribution of city resources, built on “enterprise efficiency and accountability for the public benefit.”
That’s a tall order for any mayor, but Bowdre likes to talk big. Again, without details. On numerous occasions, he dodged the questions. He told the anchors that, like most people, they just don’t understand the big picture, but he does and we should just trust him. Riiiiiight. We’ve all heard that before.
Bowdre chairs the Miami-Dade County Cryptocurrency Task Force, where he’s been at the front lines of local discussions about how digital currency could fit into county government. He said he worked with then city commissioner and Miami-Dade Commissioner Keon Hardemon as liaison to the Overtown Community Oversight Board, working on development oversight for the Southeastern Overtown/Park West CRA — yes, the same zone wrapped around the Miami Worldcenter megaproject.
Read related: Christian Cevallos: Immigrant builder runs for Miami mayor to audit City Hall
He calls himself a “bridge builder,” an educator, and “a strong international global leader.”
Maybe en su propia casa.
Ladra loves a visionary, but Bowdre seems more like he’s practicing a TED Talk in front of a bathroom mirror than a man with a plan. Subsidies through tech? Rebates by blockchain? Bonuses for residents? It’s the kind of thing that sounds fantastic in a pitch deck — but voters might want to know how it works in real life, especially in a city where potholes, police overtime, and rent control eat up most of the agenda.
Bowdre, who obviously likes to dress to impress, desperately wants to be taken seriously. He wants to be seen as part of that new generation of Miamians who see opportunity in innovation — not just in construction cranes and campaign contributions. He says he wants accountability, efficiency, and what he calls “enterprise solutions” for public good.
But what we want are details. And he’s always short on those.
Elijah John Bowdre may be the only candidate in the race who can talk cryptocurrency, city zoning, and Chinese investment in one breath — and somehow make it sound real. But is it just another crypto-fueled Miami illusion?
Bowdre is another one of those candidates who isn’t going to make double digits in the race — Ladra expects June Savage to do better — but his campaign might remind voters that Miami’s future could be written in more than just cement and scandal. It could be coded, too.

Help Ladra keep bringing you deep coverage of the Miami election you can’t get anywhere else with a contribution to Political Cortadito. Click here. And thank you for your support of independent, watchdog journalism.

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If you think the race for Miami Beach mayor between incumbent hallway monitor Steve Meiner and quirky comeback kid Kristen Rosen-Gonzalez is the craziest thing on the city’s ballot this year (more on that later), think again.
The race to replace Rosen-Gonzalez in the Group 1 seat features a clusterbunch of seven candidates. But only one of them has a family history that makes all the others look downright boring. And, also, electable.
Republican lawyer Monique Pardo Pope — who introduced herself to voters as coming from a working-class Cuban family that believed in “sacrifice, service, and standing up for what’s right” — forgot to mention one tiny detail: Her father was a Hitler-loving serial killer sentenced to death by lethal injection.
Oooops.
Only in the 305, ¿verdad?
Manuel Pardo was a Sweetwater cop-turned-vigilante who fatally shot nine people in three months back in 1986. He idolized Hitler, kept Nazi trinkets in his Hialeah apartment, tattooed his Doberman with a swastika, and told the court the only thing he regretted was that he didn’t kill 99 people instead of nine drug dealers for money and cocaine. Some say Pardo may have been the inspiration for the series Dexter, about a Florida medical examiner who becomes a vigilante serial killer.
Pardo was executed in 2012 after Gov. Rick Scott signed his death warrant.
Read related: Kristen 3.0? Miami Beach firebrand commissioner vs Mayor Steve Meiner
Documentary filmmaker Billy Corben was the one who connected the dots last month in a video that went viral faster than you can say #BecauseMiami. The Miami New Times followed with a report that has far too much detail on Manuel Pardo’s crimes — and his special relationship to his daughter — for Ladra to recount here. Read it.
Pardo Pope, 44, says she prays every day for the families of her father’s victims, and called herself another “victim” of his crimes in a letter to New Times. But her Instagram tells another story. That’s where she calls her papi her “hero,” her “guiding light,” her “eternal best friend” — and quotes his last words, which include a farewell to her. She even posted a photo of herself earlier this year cheesing next to now Sen. Scott, the guv who green-lit her dad’s execution.
Awkward. And creepy.
To be fair, Pardo Pope was only 4 when her father went on his killing spree. She says her earliest memories are of him as the Marine, the cop, the protector. That’s the dad she remembers. But voters might be surprised to learn that she chose to highlight her Pardo surname on the ballot — the very name that’s synonymous with one of Florida’s most notorious murderers.
In a social media post in response to the Corben video, Pardo Pope says she never hid the truth and that “political activists sensationalized my childhood trauma for clicks, ratings, and personal gain.” She’s now calling the sudden spotlight “bullying” and “smears.”
One thing is certain: You gotta admire the kind of self-confidence it takes for the daughter of a Neo-Nazi serial killer to run for office — in Miami Beach, of all places.
Meanwhile, the other six candidates — Daniel Ciraldo, Brian Ehrlich, Ava Frankel, Matthew Gultanoff, Omar Jimenez and Monica Matteo-Salinas — are probably wondering how they’re supposed to get any attention in a race where one contender’s campaign slogan might as well be: Daughter of Dexter.
The Miami Beach general election is Nov. 4, with a Dec. 9 runoff if nobody cracks 50%.

If you want more of this kind of independent, watchdog journalism in Miami Beach, please consider making a contribution to Political Cortadito. Click here. And thank you for your support.

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There’s a Miami mayoral debate Thursday night, but the biggest news isn’t who’s talking. It’s who’s not going.
The Biscayne Neighborhoods Association, which is hosting the debate along with Griffin Catalyst, the philanthropic arm of billionaire Ken Griffin, decided to only invite the candidates who polled above 10% in a survey Griffin’s group commissioned.
Their list: Former City Manager Emilio González, Miami-Dade Commissioner Eileen Higgins, former City Commissioner Ken Russell and former Miami-Dade Commissioner Mayor Sir Xavier L. Suarez, who was the first Cuban-born mayor of Miami in 1995. These are the candidates out of the 13 in total who will get the spotlight — and airtime, because the debate streams live on NBC 6 and miamiherald.com.
Read related: One-liners and other memorable moments from Miami mayoral debate
Two of the loudest figures in Miami Politics are apparently not going: Commissioner Joe Carollo reportedly made the threshold and was invited, but had not confirmed as of late Wednesday. And former City Commissioner Alex Díaz de la Portilla — running a redemption tour after political corruption charges were dropped last year — was left on the outside, looking in. He apparently did not even get 10% in the Griffin poll.
You know that’s going to sting.
The four who were invited also polled the highest — along with Carollo and ADLP — for the Downtown Neighbors Alliance debate last month, which became a political food fight of insults and zingers.
Thursday’s debate will be moderated by Miami Herald politics editor David Smiley and NBC 6 anchor Jackie Nespral at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts. It starts at 7 p.m., runs about 90 minutes, and while the audience is invite-only — and Ladra has asked to see the guest list — the rest of us can watch live on NBC 6 or stream it on miamiherald.com.
Who’s in — and what they bring
For Suarez, this is a homecoming of sorts. The elder statesman — or elder showman, depending who you ask — gets a primetime platform to remind voters that he was mayor before most of these other candidates were even in politics. He’s been trying to position himself as the grown-up alternative to the circus Miami has become under “El Loco” and “ADLP,” who, ironically, won’t be there to defend themselves. He will appeal to the nostalgic voters.
For Russell, who left a commission seat in 2022 to run for Congress, it’s a new venue in which to pitch himself as the rational, reform-minded alternative. He’s been hammering a message about transparency and ethics — two words that haven’t exactly been trending in Miami City Hall.
Read related: Poll has Eileen Higgins in Miami mayoral runoff with Emilio Gonzalez
For Higgins, the only woman on stage who is trying to become the first female mayor of Miami, it’s an opportunity to stand out. She’s already known countywide as a commissioner who digs into budgets and bureaucracy, and she’ll likely highlight her work on housing and transit. She might even call out the city’s dysfunctional permitting process, again.
For Gonzalez, a onetime President Bush appointee to U.S. Immigration and Citizenship Services, retired Army colonel and Trump fan, it’s a last chance to appeal to the other side of the aisle. A consistent conservative voice pitching tax relief and “back to basics” government, he touts the endorsements of Gov. Ron DeSantis, Sen. Rick Scott and, most recently, U.S. Senator from Texas Ted Cruz. But all that could turn off Democrat and Independent voters, which he needs to win.
Who’s out — and why it matters
Carollo wouldn’t dare show up to a debate hosted by The Herald, which he calls the Miami Gramma, referring to the Communist Party’s newspaper in Cuba. Ladra doubts that Diaz de la Portilla would have gone, if he had even invited. He told Political Cortadito that the Griffin poll wasn’t realistic. “You have to be an idiot to believe that,” he texted Ladra.
“I am in a runoff with Higgins,” added Diaz de la Portilla, who paid $27,500 last month for his own poll, which he declined to share.
The organizers say the cutoff was 10% in the Griffin Catalyst poll. That’s convenient for them — and a little convenient for Griffin, who’s been spending big on “civic engagement” efforts since moving Citadel to Miami from Chicago.
But let’s be honest: Any debate without Crazy Joe and ADLP is going to feel… quieter. No fireworks. No finger-pointing. No reason for extra security. That might make for smoother television, but it also sanitizes what has been a messy, colorful race — and takes two of the biggest political personalities in the city out of the mix.
Ken hitting Eileen is not as much fun as when he hits Alex.
Read related: Fundraising reports for Miami mayoral race show millions are being invested
And by cherry-picking who’s “serious” enough to stand under the bright lights, the debate hosts are shaping the narrative, perhaps to their favor.
Suarez gets legitimacy. Higgins gets exposure. Russell gets a chance to look sensible. González gets validation.
But in a city where politics is performance art, this debate might end up remembered less for what’s said on stage than for who got cut from the script.
The lights go up at 7 p.m. Thursday on NBC6 and miamiherald.com.

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