Medley’s Jan. 25 special election could see a Florida ‘first’
Politics are a family affair in Medley, population 879, a 4.3-square-mile town of trailer parks and heavy industry that sits just north of Doral.
Candidates running for a council seat in Medley’s Jan. 25 special election include Lourdes Rodriguez, 66, and Karina Pacheco, 45, wife of current Medley councilman Ivan Pacheco.
Rodriguez is an office administrator for a transportation company and Pacheco works at a daycare center, according to documents obtained by the Herald through a public records request.
If Karina is elected as a councilwoman, the Pachecos could make Florida history by becoming the first known spouses to serve simultaneously on the same council or commission.
Florida’s anti-nepotism law “does not prohibit a husband and wife from simultaneously serving on the same town council,” according to a 1989 Florida Attorney General opinion.
“Agreed that it’s allowable under the law but if she is elected, the two must be extremely careful to avoid discussing council business except at meetings held in strict compliance with the sunshine law,” said Barbara Peterson, executive director of the Florida Center for Government Accountability. “They should be aware that they will be subject to heightened public scrutiny.”
Peterson expressed similar concerns in 2017 when married couple Martin and Kathie Marquez each ran unsuccessfully for the Miami Springs council.
The Florida League of Cities did not return a message asking whether it knows of any Florida city whereby a husband and wife currently serve as council members of commissioners.
The town has a father and daughter, Edgar and Lizelh Ayala, serving on its town council, and they hold two of the five votes that determine how Medley is run.
“We see things in different ways,” Councilman Edgar Ayala said of his daughter, Lizelh. “When we get to the dais, we are independent.”
As a candidate for Medley council, Lizelh Ayala reached out to the Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics and Public Trust, in 2020, which issued its opinion on family members serving at the same time on an elected body.
“While there is no legal prohibition against you and your father occupying seats on the Medley Town Council, such an arrangement should be undertaken with the utmost caution so as not to damage the public trust,” the commission’s opinion said.
Medley’s Jan. 25 special election was caused by the suspension of Councilwoman Ana Lilia Stefano, who stands accused of using her association with a nonprofit foundation to commit fraud. Last month, Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an executive order suspending Stefano, and the order prohibits her from performing any official public office duties during her suspension.
Stefano cruised to a victory last spring in a Medley special election. Last month, however, she was charged with an organized scheme to defraud over $50,000 and grand theft over $20,000, according to a Miami-Dade State Attorneys’ Office press release.
Rodriguez and Pacheco did not return a message from the Herald asking what each intends to do if elected. Each candidate has run unsuccessfully for Medley council seats.
Medley has an operating budget of about $46 million and pays its council members an annual salary of $58,135.47.
Support for the candidates is split between two trailer parks: Medley mobile home park, at 8181 Northwest South River Dr., and Lakeside Retirement Park, at 10601 Northwest 105th Way.
Registered voters in Medley may cast ballots for the Jan. 25 special election from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Medley Town Hall, 7777 Northwest 72nd Ave. For information, call (305) 887-9541.
Theo Karantsalis can be reached at karantsalis@bellsouth.net
This story was originally published December 31, 2021 at 1:09 PM.