Hialeah elects Luis Rodriguez, Bryan Calvo to city council in runoff election
Hialeah voters elected two new members to the city’s seven-member council during a runoff election Tuesday.
Longtime Hialeah resident Luis Rodriguez and political newcomer Bryan Calvo handily won their respective races, and will join a council led by new Mayor Esteban “Steve” Bovo, where they will vote on legislation and decide how tax dollars will be used in the majority-Cuban city of about 230,000 people.
Unofficial results from the Miami-Dade County Elections Department Tuesday show that Calvo beat Group VI candidate Angelica Pacheco with about 67.5% of the vote. In Group VII, Rodriguez beat longtime resident Maylin Villalonga, capturing about 76.5% of the vote. Just 8,884 of 109,518 registered voters participated in the election, with the bulk of voters opting for mail ballots.
Less than 500 votes were still being counted Tuesday night.
Rodriguez, 48, is a father of two and the son of Cuban immigrants. He grew up in Hialeah, and moved back to the city in 2016. In addition to Bovo’s endorsement, Rodriguez was also backed by Hialeah-area County Commissioner Rene Garcia. He is a commercial sales manager for Advanced Auto Parts.
Rodriguez celebrated his win at the Hialeah Park Casino, where Bovo held his Election Day celebration two weeks ago.
“I am a little bit turned off that the voters didn’t turn out to vote,” he said. “But at least some people did come out. I am going to be working for them on day one. I am a Hialeah boy.”
Calvo, 23, grew up in Hialeah and went on to Harvard to study political science. Upon graduating, he returned to Hialeah and married his high school girlfriend. He is now a law student at Florida International University.
He said he hopes to “hit the ground running” on issues like water quality, parks and recreation and transportation after his swearing-in ceremony Friday.
“These small things are so critical to the daily life of our residents. That has been my message from the beginning,” Calvo said from his celebratory party at Paraiso Tropical restaurant in Hialeah. “This is a new generation of leadership in our city. I am only 23 years old. I will be the youngest elected officeholder in the county.”
The city is expected to have another opening on the council soon after Bovo’s stepson, Oscar De la Rosa, said he would resign to avoid a potential conflict with his stepfather.
On Nov. 2, Hialeah voters elected Bovo and reelected incumbent Councilman Carl Zogby. They sent the Group VI and Group VII candidates to a runoff after the candidates failed to garner 50% of the vote.
This story was originally published November 16, 2021 at 8:14 PM.