With one more win, Carollos could control same Miami commission seat for 20 years

The stakes are high for candidate Frank Carollo on Election Day: If he wins his race Tuesday, he and his brother could occupy the same Miami City Commission seat for 20 years in a row, maintaining a decades-long grip on power at time when Miami’s so-called political dynasties are facing heightened scrutiny.

Carollo, a former city commissioner, was first elected to the District 3 seat in 2009 and served until 2017, when his older brother Joe took over. Joe Carollo went on to win a second term in 2021.

With Joe Carollo now termed out, Frank Carollo is vying for his old job. If Frank wins his commission race and goes on to serve the full four-year term, the Carollo brothers will have occupied the District 3 seat for 20 consecutive years, from 2009 to 2029.

While it’s not uncommon for members of the same political families to run for elected office in the city — former Mayor Xavier Suarez, for example, is running to succeed his son, Francis Suarez, as mayor — a 20-year streak in a single position is a remarkable statistic, even in Miami.

READ MORE: Dynasty city: How three Miami families may extend their decades of political power

But Frank Carollo said name recognition and the connection to his brother aren’t the reason people will vote for him.

“We’re two very different people with the same last name,” Frank said in a text message this week. “If I get elected, it will not be because of my last name, it will be because residents trust that I can make a difference, deliver results and I have the record to prove it!”

The certified public accountant is facing off against seven challengers, setting him up for a possible runoff if he fails to get more than 50% of the vote Tuesday night. His attempted comeback lands at a time when Miami voters are also weighing in on a ballot referendum that would create stricter term limits, capping commissioners to just two terms in their lifetime.

Asked about a potential 20-year Carollo run on the City Commission, Joe Carollo shrugged off the idea that there was an heir apparent.

“It’s up to the people,” Joe Carollo said. “It’s a democracy. It’s not a monarchy.”

Two Carollos in City Hall at once?

Frank isn’t the only Carollo on the ballot. As he vacates the District 3 seat, Joe Carollo is one of 13 contenders in the crowded mayor’s race.

That means there’s a chance — if they’re both victorious — that the two will be in City Hall at the same time. But the brothers, who are 15 years apart, said they operate as individuals.

“He would probably be the hardest of all commissioners for me to deal with, just because he’s my brother,” Joe Carollo said. “But I love him, I support him, and I think he’s tremendously qualified for that position.”

Frank Carollo described himself as having “a record of being an independent voice” and said he plans to work with “whoever becomes Mayor, as well as my colleagues on the Commission in order to put residents first.”

While they’re running in competitive races on the same ballot, the siblings said they’re not campaigning together.

“We’re two individual people and each of us has his own record to put before the voters,” Frank said.

Joe Carollo said there’s “no doubt in my mind” that his brother will win.

“I don’t have to endorse Frank,” Joe said. “Frank doesn’t have to endorse me. ... He’s running his own campaign. I’m running mine. He has his own life. I have mine.”

‘The same political insiders controlling city hall’

Getting the most votes might not be the only obstacle Frank Carollo faces on the path to the District 3 seat.

Miami voters are also weighing in on the term limits referendum. The proposed charter change, which is retroactive, would limit the city’s elected officials to two terms as mayor and two terms as a commissioner for their entire lifetime.

Frank Carollo has already served two four-year terms as a commissioner, meaning that he would, in theory, be barred from another round on the City Commission. But in practice, it’s unclear how the term limits provision would be enforced if he wins the race, since he already qualified as a candidate.

One of Carollo’s District 3 opponents, Rolando Escalona, said he’s voting in favor of the referendum “to bring much needed change to city hall.”

“I decided to run for city commissioner in District 3 because like so many of my neighbors, friends and residents, we are tired of the same political insiders controlling city hall,” Escalona said in a statement.

READ MORE: Miami City Commission candidate can stay on the ballot, judge rules

District 3 candidate Denise Galvez Turros said she is confident the referendum will pass and that “the political dynasties that have plagued this city are about to end.”

“While some technicalities may complicate how [the proposal] is applied immediately, what matters most is the overwhelming message voters sent,” Galvez Turros said in a statement.

Asked what he would do if his victory is challenged by voters approving lifetime term limits, Frank Carollo said: “I am a duly qualified candidate and I’m not letting any distractions take my focus off the campaign.”

Tess Riski

Miami Herald

Tess Riski covers Miami City Hall. She joined the Miami Herald in 2022 and has covered local politics throughout Miami-Dade County. She is a graduate of Columbia Journalism School’s Toni Stabile Center for Investigative Journalism.