Elections

‘Ready to shatter glass ceilings.’ Hillary Clinton backs Levine Cava for Miami-Dade mayor

Former U.S. Secretary of State and 2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton on Monday endorsed Daniella Levine Cava for Miami-Dade County mayor.

Levine Cava, a Democrat, is facing Republican Esteban “Steve” Bovo Jr. in the nonpartisan mayoral race between the two county commissioners. Clinton’s endorsement comes about a week before Election Day, Nov. 3. Polls are open for early voting, which ends on Nov. 1.

“Local leadership is critical to moving our country forward. That’s why I’m proud to support @VoteDaniella for Miami-Dade Mayor,” Clinton wrote on Twitter. “She is prepared, she is qualified, and she is ready to shatter glass ceilings as the county’s first woman mayor.”

Levine Cava is Clinton’s second endorsement in Miami-Dade politics this year. The former U.S. senator and secretary of state also endorsed Sybrina Fulton, the mother of Trayvon Martin and founder of the Trayvon Martin Foundation, during her bid for the District 1 seat in the Miami-Dade County Commission. In August, Fulton lost to Miami Gardens Mayor Oliver Gilbert.

Who has endorsed Levine Cava and Bovo for Miami-Dade County mayor?

Levine Cava and Bovo have collected endorsements from well-known Florida officials in their respective parties. Supporters listed on Levine Cava’s website include Florida’s Commissioner of Agriculture Nikki Fried, State Sen. Annette Taddeo, U.S. Reps. Donna Shalala, Frederica Wilson and Debbie Mucarsel-Powell.

Supporters listed on Bovo’s website include U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, Florida Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez, U.S. Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, former Congressmen Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Lincoln Diaz-Balart.

Whoever wins the mayor race will be the successor to current Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez. He is running for Florida’s 26th Congressional District seat against first-term incumbent Democratic Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell.

This story was originally published October 26, 2020 at 10:05 AM.

Michelle Marchante
Miami Herald
Michelle Marchante covers the pulse of healthcare in South Florida and also the City of Coral Gables. Before that, she covered the COVID-19 pandemic, hurricanes, crime, education, entertainment and other topics in South Florida for the Herald as a breaking news reporter. She recently won first place in the health reporting category in the 2025 Sunshine State Awards for her coverage of Steward Health’s bankruptcy. An investigative series about the abrupt closure of a Miami heart transplant program led Michelle and her colleagues to be recognized as finalists in two 2024 Florida Sunshine State Award categories. She also won second place in the 73rd annual Green Eyeshade Awards for her consumer-focused healthcare stories and was part of the team of reporters who won a 2022 Pulitzer Prize for the Miami Herald’s breaking news coverage of the Surfside building collapse. Michelle graduated with honors from Florida International University and was a 2025 National Press Foundation Covering Workplace Mental Health fellow and a 2020-2021 Poynter-Koch Media & Journalism fellow.  Support my work with a digital subscription
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