Loyal readers of Political Cortadito have come to expect our “winners and losers” post in the wake of every local election, highlighting those people and entities who scored or got hammered, other than the candidates.
After the April 8 re-election in Coral Gables of Mayor Vince Lago and Vice Mayor Rhonda Anderson, there were already some obvious winners and losers. But it was only safe to wait until after the runoff, where Lago got his handpicked candidate, Richard Lara, over the finish line, to be sure. And thorough.
Read related: Vince Lago scores with Richard Lara’s Coral Gables commission runoff win
So, without any further blah, blah, blah, the winners and losers from this year’s biannual Coral Gables election are:
WINNERS

Jesse Manzano and Brian Goldmeier, Lago’s campaign manager and professional fundraiser. These two have another notch on their belt and a fatter bank account to show for it. Manzano overcame some heavy negatives with consistent messaging about how bad Commissioner Kirk Menendez would be because of the decisions he’s made in the past (raises, city managers, November vote, etc.). It was brilliant. Evil, but brilliant. Goldmeier is just richer.
The sick anonymous trolls who like to attack on Lago’s behalf with vulgar language and inappropriate images on social media. They have been having a field day.
Developers, real estate investors and construction industry people who donated to the Lago and Lara campaigns like it was buying precious eggs, and now stand to benefit from a consolidated 3-2 vote that seems development friendly.
Chelsea Granell, the mayor’s chief of staff of none, who gets to keep her job and her $91,165 annual salary plus benefits.
Former Miami Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla, a Lago supporter, who is likely to tell people that he was the one who got the mayor and his slate elected. Some may have heard he had breakfast recently with Manzano, so they’ll believe it.

LOSERS

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Newly-elected Coral Gables Commissioner Richard Lara, who won a runoff Tuesday against attorney Tom Wells, isn’t the only one who is celebrating his victory. Mayor Vince Lago, who handpicked Lara and supported him throughout, wins back his majority on the city commission — meaning that he’ll get to move his agenda forward.
It also means there is going to be hell to pay for anyone who opposed him.
Lara beat Wells with a solid 10-point lead, just over 55% of the vote, an 847-vote difference, according to the Miami-Dade Elections Department’s published results. The general counsel for Spanish Broadcasting Systems led in all three categories — absentee or vote-by-mail ballots, early voting and Election Day, although the last was a smaller gap (less than 100 votes).

We have to wonder if one of those votes was his own, seeing as how Lara hadn’t voted in the Gables city elections since 1999 before this year.
Turnout was a little more than 23%, which is lower than Election Day’s 29% but higher than some expected for a runoff after Easter Sunday.
Read related: Coral Gables mayor’s power hinges on runoff — Richard Lara vs Tom Wells
Lara was always the favorite after coming in with 47% in the first round April 8. Wells got 39% and lobbyist Claudia Miro, who later endorsed Lara, came in with 13%, which forced the runoff. Lago also won solidly April 8 and so did Vice Mayor Rhonda Anderson, who also endorsed Lara.
Wells got the endorsement of The Miami Herald, which did him as good as it did Claudia Miro in the first round, and the Coral Gables Neighborhood Association, which did him as good as it did Felix Pardo, who lost against Anderson, and Commissioner Kirk Menendez, who lost against Lago.
This last victory Tuesday will change the dynamics on the commission, giving Lago the third vote he needs to get whatever he wants done. The mayor had been on the losing side of several 3-2 votes since shortly after the 2023 victories of commissioners Melissa Castro and Ariel Fernandez, who might have been crying Tuesday night, who were elected against Lago’s wishes and money. The mayor’s behavior towards the two newbies pushed Menendez a former Lago ally who lost his mayoral bid earlier this month, to quickly become a swing vote for them and against Lago.
Lara was always intended to restore Lago’s third vote. He announced his run for office during public comments at a commission meeting in February of last year, way before Menendez moved to the mayoral race. In fact, las malas lenguas say he switched because a poll showed Lara was a threat to Menendez on the salary and city manager issues, which were both Lago’s and Lara’s platform. Kirk decided he could do better against Lago, who certainly has his share of detractors and he could draw on that.
Meanwhile, Lara was an unknown. But he had many of the mayor’s same supporters flood his campaign account with almost $272,000, including $103,000 in just eight days after the first round — and Lago’s political action committee, Coral Gables First, which sent text messages and mailers to voters. Lara had more of everything — more mailers, more phone banking, more people knocking on doors.
Read related: Coral Gables election choice is a Vince Lago yes vote or an independent voice
That’s iffy right there. For a mayor to be so invested in a commission candidate’s victory. Lago is not only going to be insoportable, he’s also going to be unstoppable. Look for things like the mobility hub and the annexation of Little Gables to rear their ugly heads again. Maybe not immediately, but eventually.
Wells self funded his campaign, to the tune of about $19,000, and just did not have enough to counter the hammering he got from Lago, er, Lara (read: both), which included 11th hour whisper campaigns about Wells traveling to a golf tournament in Georgia (he didn’t) and some backroom deal to hire Menendez as the city a manager (laughable).
Wells emailed Lara a concession message late Tuesday, after the results were in.
“Congratulations on winning the Coral Gables Commissioner Group III seat,” Wells told him. “I wish you luck in navigating the issues of serving the City as an elected official and look forward to your campaign promise of voting independently and restoring civility and transparency as to each issue for the benefit of Coral Gables.”
But somehow, Ladra doubts it. Because he would have to be willing to, sometimes, vote against his benefactor.
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WORKING STORY: It’s in their DNA.
Jose Regalado, the son of former Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado and brother of Miami-Dade Commissioner Raquel Regalado, resigned from his job as the assistant building director with the city of Miami Monday to run for commission in District 4, where there is a vacancy created by the death of Manolo Reyes.
“This decision was not made lightly,” Regalado wrote to City Manager Art Noriega. “I had hoped to continue contributing to the work ahead, but sometimes the call to serve takes a different form than expected. After thoughtful reflection, I’ve decided to pursue the opportunity to serve the city in a different capacity by seeking the vacant commission seat in District 4.”
Regalado was born and raised in District 4 and steeped in Miami politics his whole life. He was a deep sea photographer before he decided to become a public servant, but he always worked on his father’s and sister’s campaigns. He was hired as chief policy advisor for District 4 in 2017, just as Reyes was elected. He stayed there for almost two years before he became the chief of staff to the deputy city manager in 2019. After five months, he became the assistant to the city manager, where he coordinated the mobile COVID-19 vaccination program for elderly, homebound residents and co-created the COVID-19 restaurant recovery program. In 2021, he was promoted to assistant building director.
“When I chose to enter public service, it was with the clear intention of contributing to the community that shaped me,” he wrote in his resignation letter. “I came to local government because I believe it’s where the most immediate and lasting impact can be made, where decisions affect people’s daily lives in real time, and where trust is built or broken not with rhetoric, but with action.”
His resignation is effective immediately, but Regalado offered to stay on as long as needed for a smooth transition.
Regalado’s salary at the city was $152,417 a year. As a city commissioner, he will be paid a salary of about $58,000, but with added benefits like car and cell phone allowances it gets closer to $100K. It’s still a deep pay cut.
This is a working story. Details will be added as more reporting is done throughout the day. Please check back later.
 
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The Downtown Neighbors Association will have a public safety town hall Wednesday with Miami Police Chief Manny Morales to discuss some “recent high profile incidents” in the urban core, talk about the homeless crisis and look at the 2025 downtown public safety action plan.
DNA President James Torres has been very vocal recently about what he says are a series of failures by the city to provide services to the downtown. He has also been critical of the Miami Downtown Development Authority, which has a $13.5 million annual budget — through a special levy on properties within its district boundaries in downtown, Brickell and Edgewater — and recently gifted $100,000 to the UFC for its events at the Kaseya Center. The UFC is worth about $12 billion, according to Forbes.
Read related: Effort to dissolve Miami DDA cites ‘bloated’ salaries, redundancy, UFC gift
“We’ve seen the videos. We’ve felt the concern in our community. It’s time to come together and talk about what really matters: feeling safe where we live,” Torres posted on social media Monday. “That recent assault in Brickell wasn’t just a headline — it was a wake-up call. Let’s make sure our voices are heard!”
Torres, who has called for a ballot question on the dissolution of the DDA, was referring to a video posted by Only In Dade of a woman who said she was physically assaulted on a walk to Brickell Key. “Bring pepper spray with you at all times no matter if it’s sunny, daylight, in the middle of the week,” the woman says in the video, calling it a public service announcement. “I was literally chased down the street and there was a ton of people around and I was screaming for help.
Since her first video was posted, she recorded a second one about “an outrageous amount of people come forward who have experienced the exact same thing, with the exact same guy.”
The same day the DDA granted the UFC that $100K, the 15-member board also voted to allocate $550,000 for additional police services in the Central Business District and Brickell areas. According to their social media statement, the board plans to fund expanded, additional police patrol services to Edgewater and has committed $1.2 million to this effort.
The town hall from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at 50 Biscayne Boulevard will also be shared on Zoom.

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The deadline was noon Monday for those who want to be considered for a potential appointment to the Miami-Dade Commission in District 6, where Kevin Marino Cabrera sat until he resigned last week to be the new U.S. Ambassador to Panama.
But everyone says the fix is in.
West Miami Vice Mayor Natalie Milian Orbis is the favorite for the post, which could be a two-year-plus appointment and will give whoever gets it ample advantage in the next election, which will be in 2026 if a special election is not called. Milian Orbis is the wife of Cabrera’s chief of staff, Manuel Orbis, who would likely have to get a different position at the county.
Read related: Miami-Dade’s Kevin Cabrera leaves for Panama, county gets set to appoint
Other rumored wannabes included State Sen. Bryan Avila, West Miami Mayor Eric Diaz-Padron and an unknown named Francisco Petrirena, who is the director of the city of Miami’s government relations department.
But Milian Orbis — in a photo with Cabrera here during Dade Days in Tallahassee earlier this month — is the only one who has made her intentions public.
Last week, shortly after Cabrera’s resignation was effective, Commission Chairman Anthony Rodriguez had the commission auditor establish a process for District 6 residents to apply for consideration. Even before he did that, on the same day (April 14), Milian Orbis filed paperwork about opening a campaign account for the commission seat race.
According to her bio on the city’s website, Milian Orbis began her public service career 20 years ago as an executive administrator at the Cuban-American Association of Civil Engineers before she went to the county where she worked at a number of commission offices through roles such as commission aide, legislative assistant, and legislative director with former commissioners Joe Martinez, Rebeca Sosa and Juan C. Zapata.
If Milian Orbis — or anyone, for that matter — wanted to be considered for an appointment, the individual had to fill out an application that basically consists of an oath and proof of residency. That’s it. They could have also submitted a resume and a video or audio file — two minutes max. But it wasn’t required.
Ladra thinks there should also be a financial disclosure form like there is for regular candidates.
The application period closed at noon Monday. Submissions will be reviewed and considered at the Tuesday, May 6 county commission meeting. So why such a short window? Less than a week.
Read related: Kevin Cabrera tapped as Panama ambassador; so who will replace him?
This could be a second chance for former Coral Gables Commissioner Jorge Fors, who got 39% of the vote in 2022. Ladra doesn’t even know if he wants it. But he is a no-brainer, seeing as how 20,319 people in the district did vote for him. That is something that the commission could argue legitimately. They would not be choosing the appointment. The people did.
Of course, it would be even better to have a special election. But it looks like Rodriguez may want to appoint someone in the meantime, anyway.
“District 6 deserves representation in the most expeditious manner possible,” the chairman said in a statement. “There are too many critical conversations, decisions, and votes that need to be made in the coming weeks and months for the Commission to create a process that will leave our body – and the people of District 6 – without a voice and advocate.”
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Former Miami Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla — arrested in 2023 on charges of public corruption and suspended from office — is in a fierce divorce battle with his wife, after a seven months marriage, for the attorneys’ fees and splitting of assets. Now, he wants to depose a former city staffer who was a witness for the state in the criminal case against him that was dropped by the Broward County State Attorney’s Office last Fall and who he has already previously harassed.
What does former Chief of Staff Karla Fortuny have to do with the couple’s financial holdings? Nada.
The subpoena for her deposition “clearly appears to be solely calculated to harass and oppress Fortuny and to exact revenge upon her,” wrote attorney William Brady Jr. in an objection to the subpoena for her deposition and a motion for a protective order filed last week.
It’s not the first time that Fortuny feels intimidated by Diaz de la Portilla. Last year, she filed a petition for injunction for protection against stalking. Stalking! ADLP “engaged in an oppressive campaign to harass and intimidate Fortuny by texting her incessantly,” while she was a listed witness in the criminal case against him. “This conduct is extremely intimidating,” she said in that motion. “He stalks me via text and now has used a ‘burner phone’ to text my supervisor at my current job.”
Read related: Miami’s Alex Diaz de la Portilla arrested on corruption, pay-for-play park deal
That was when Fortuny was at Florida International University, where she went after she left her city job to go work as director of local government and community affairs. She moved last month to Capital City Consulting’s Miami office with Managing Partner Brian May while she goes to law school at night. Let Diaz de la Portilla try texting him.
“In my opinion, he has obsessive compulsive personality disorder and is an alcoholic,” Fortuny said in the 2024 motion. “He frightens me. I believe him to be a relentless and dangerous individual.”
After bonding out of the Turner Guilford Knight detention center in September, 2023 ADLP talks to reporters.
Relentless? Clearly. But maybe not so dangerous. She was not granted the stalking order. It seems most, if not all, the messages were about getting her in for a deposition.
The judge in the criminal case did, however, instruct Diaz de la Portilla, who was investigated for witness tampering, to have no further contact with Fortuny, who was hired by Diaz de la Portilla in 2020 as a communications aide and rose the ranks quickly, becoming deputy chief of staff in early 2021, then chief of staff in May of that same year. His office has a lot of turnover.
In last week’s motion, Brady cited the criminal case intimidation and added that ADLP’s attorney “subjected Fortuny to a lengthy deposition which Fortuny contends was largely calculated to harass, bother and intimidate Fortuny.” Furthermore, a review of that deposition — which was “exceedingly long and unnecessary” — would show that she doesn’t know squat about ADLP’s assets, debts or income.
“Fortuny has no doubt that [ADLP] seeks to subject Fortuny to deposition for the purposes of harassment, embarrassment, intimidation, control of Fortuny and to seek revenge against upon her and contends the the deposition is not calculated to lead to credible and admissible evidence,” in the divorce proceedings.
Read related: Alex Diaz de la Portilla’s wife sues for divorce after arrest, foreclosure
Other interesting parties that have been subpoenaed include Diaz de la Portilla’s famous absentee or ghost employee, Jenny Nillo — who was caught drinking and driving on the job in a city car while running ADLP’s personal errands and alcohol shopping — served in January and developer Lewis Swezy, who was served in February. Why not William “Bill” Riley, Jr., the lobbyist that was arrested with him in 2023 who spent a weekend in Boston with Diaz de la Portilla and his wife.
Diaz de la Portilla — who has told everyone that he is running for Miami mayor this year — did not, as usual, return a phone call and voice mail message. In a cryptic text where he deflects, like always, he wrote: “She may be covering up for the felony she committed… as you have already seen, the truth always prevails at the end of the day.”
No, that is not what Ladra has seen at all.
“If she doesn’t perjure herself she should be fine,” he wrote later. “She hacked my computer.
“All this is handled by the lawyers. We should let them do their work,” Diaz de la Portilla texted, adding that there were four more subpoenas being delivered in the next couple of weeks.
Fortuny declined to comment on her new court motion.
This divorce has lasted longer than the marriage.
Vanessa Garcia Azzam filed for divorce in January of 2024, which was less than four months after Diaz de la Portilla bonded out of jail on his multiple felony charges — including bribery and money laundering. In June, ADLP filed an answer to her motion to dissolve the marriage, and a counter motion for dissolution, asking the judge to award him all attorney’s fees, court costs and to divide their belongings.
“There are marital assets subject to equitable distribution including, but not limited to: jewelry, designer clothing, shoes and accessories, electronics, household goods and furnishings, bank accounts, and retirement accounts,” the motion says.
Shoes? He wants her shoes? And her retirement? Que poco hombre eres, Alejandro.
Read related: Alex Diaz de la Portilla wants estranged wife to pay divorce attorney, trial fees
Hopefully, the judge will find that Garcia Azzam has been punished enough. Seven months, people! More than half of that was spent next to him defend himself against the pubic corruption charges. There’s only so much torture one can take.
Also, let’s see if Fortuny is compelled to testify about his marital finances.
Diaz de la Portilla is apparently getting off on harassing women. He is unnecessarily making the divorce harder for his wife of a whole seven months. And he is retaliating against his former chief of staff with a subpoena about matters she knows absolutely nothing about.
There’s a case management conference on May 5 in family court on the divorce. Garcia Azzam has asked the judge to compel her husband to turn on the camera for the Zoom appearances, including but not limited to hearings.
Naturally, ADLP doesn’t want to show his face.
Karla Fortuny Motion for Protective Order April 2025 by Political Cortadito on Scribd

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