Miami Beach Mayor Gelber wins reelection, two commission races go to runoffs
Voters reelected Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber to his third and final term Tuesday, giving him two more years in office to pursue his proposed overhaul of South Beach’s entertainment district.
Gelber defeated four other candidates in the mayoral race, with over 60% of the vote. In two city commission races, however, runoff elections will be needed in two weeks to decide who will join Gelber on the dais at City Hall.
Gelber’s campaign focused on his four years leading the city and his plan to “re-imagine” the 10-block South Beach entertainment district from party central to a “live, work, play” area with new housing, offices and cultural spaces.
He was also lobbying for the passage of a citywide referendum to roll back alcohol sales to 2 a.m., which voters approved Tuesday.
Gelber, who was first elected in 2017, said the two victories demonstrate that Miami Beach’s residents are tired of South Beach’s hard-party profile and ready for change.
“This all-night, hard party is over,” he told reporters.
Gelber, who won reelection in 2019 unopposed, beat Realtor Jean Marie Echemendia, businessman Ronnie Eith, property manager Gus Manessis and Carlos Enrique Gutierrez, also a property manager. Echemendia came in second with about 26% of the vote.
Gelber, 60, will be rejoining a City Commission with two new faces, as Commissioners Michael Góngora and Micky Steinberg were termed out. It was unclear Tuesday night who would take their places.
Runoff elections will be needed in the Group I and Group III commission races as no candidate received more than 50% of the vote. The top two candidates in each race will head to a runoff Nov. 16.
In Góngora’s Group I seat, former Commissioner Kristen Rosen Gonzalez was the leading vote-getter Tuesday night, with Raquel Pacheco in second place.
In Steinberg’s Group III seat, Miami Beach Planning Board member Alex Fernandez was ahead, with Stephen Cohen in second place.
Group I
Rosen Gonzalez, 48, has branded herself the anti-establishment candidate who opposes overdevelopment and the sale of public land, while pushing for “zero tolerance” policing to crack down on even minor criminal violations.
Rosen Gonzalez, a professor at Miami Dade College, was on the City Commission from 2015 to 2018 but resigned to run an ill-fated bid for Congress. She lost her bid in 2019 to reclaim her old commission seat in a runoff against now-Commissioner Steven Meiner.
Her campaign, much like her tenure on the commission, has had its share of controversy. She faced criticism, and later apologized, after falsely claiming to be Hispanic in an endorsement interview with the Miami-Dade Democratic Party.
In a statement, Rosen Gonzalez thanked her supporters and said her work wasn’t over yet.
“I congratulate all the candidates in our race, and I am ready to work hard these next two weeks, because Miami Beach deserves an independent voice on the commission,” she said.
Pacheco, the owner of a translation company, ran for the City Commission in 2019 but lost in a runoff to Commissioner Ricky Arriola.
Up against Rosen Gonzalez this year, Pacheco has pitched herself as the more measured candidate, one who would work to build consensus on the commission rather than point the finger at those with whom she disagrees. Like Rosen Gonzalez, Pacheco said she considers tackling crime her top priority and she has proposed doubling the number of officers on foot patrols and enforcing existing laws banning the public consumption of alcohol.
Pacheco, who was endorsed by Miami Beach Commission David Richardson and the Miami-Dade Democratic Party, faced questions about a 2017 bankruptcy and writing in a 2019 résumé that she “worked with” former Republican Sen. Rick Santorum, the former Republican presidential candidate who once called for a constitutional amendment to define marriage as between a man and a woman.
Speaking on Pacheco’s behalf Tuesday, campaign spokesman Jeff Garcia said Pacheco would bring “responsible, adult leadership” to the City Commission.
“The voters have responded in a very positive way to Raquel’s leadership, to her demeanor, to showing a sense of responsibility, to showing a character and demeanor that is becoming and fitting for a commissioner,” he said.
Group III
Fernandez, a senior communications aide and legislative assistant for Miami-Dade Commissioner Rebeca Sosa, entered the Group III race late after the term-limited Commissioner Góngora dropped his reelection bid following a court order.
Fernandez, who ran against Góngora for City Commission in 2009, earned Góngora’s endorsement in this year’s election and became the lead fundraiser in his race despite only entering in September.
Fernandez, 35, said he supports increasing staffing for police, code enforcement and parking staff to maintain order in South Beach.
He has proposed leveraging the city’s permit powers to coerce operators to be better partners in improving the quality of life in the city. Consistent police enforcement and more visible patrols will send a message to tourists that Miami Beach is not an anything-goes destination, he said.
Fernandez, who raised $100,000 and loaned his campaign another $64,300, may have received the most campaign donations, but he doesn’t have the largest war chest among the candidates. Stephen Cohen, a 43-year-old investor, loaned his campaign over $330,000 and raised about $5,000 from other donors. He said his campaign is not accepting “special interest” donations from businesses and hotels.
Some of Cohen’s personal earnings went to a political committee that attacked Fernandez for being a recent Republican convert. Fernandez changed his voter registration in 2020 and said he voted for President Joe Biden. He denounced the attack as an attempt to distract voters from issues that matter to them, like crime and sea level rise.
Cohen founded a community Facebook group that now has nearly 7,000 users to keep residents up to date on city issues. He said the city should adopt his social media marketing strategy to better connect with the community.
Cohen, who lost in his 2019 commission run, said in a statement Tuesday that he looked forward to the runoff. In a crowded field of candidates, Cohen said he was “the best candidate to fight for seniors and middle class families, safer streets and to combat climate change.”
“I’m honored that Miami Beach voters have put their faith in me,” he said.
This story was originally published November 2, 2021 at 10:11 PM.
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