Herald endorsement: Our choice for Miami-Dade clerk of courts | Opinion

By the Miami Herald Editorial Board

Updated November 2, 2024 11:41 AM

Miami-Dade Clerk of Courts candidates Annette Taddeo, a Democrat, and Republican Juan Fernandez-Barquin. Provided

Editorial Board’s General Election Endorsements

In advance of the upcoming general elections on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, the Editorial Board interviewed and researched candidates to better understand their views on various issues and how their policies will affect their constituents. The goal is to give voters a better idea of who’s the best candidate for each race.

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On Nov. 5, Miami-Dade County voters will pick the first elected clerk of courts and comptroller since the 2022 death of Harvey Ruvin, who was a fixture in the office after 30 years of being the county’s principal record keeper.

The choice will be important. It’ll be a bigger job than Ruvin had, expanding it to include comptroller duties that, under Ruvin, had been handled mostly by the county. The office handles basic but important functions of local government such as making sure people can file real estate deeds and pay for parking tickets.

The office keeps records for criminal, civil, traffic and parking cases. Miami-Dade residents need a clerk’s office that is easy for them to access with affordable fees.

Republican Juan Fernandez-Barquin, formerly a member of the Florida House, was appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in June 2023 to finish out Ruvin’s term. He is now running for a full, four-year term.

Annette Taddeo, a Democrat, a former state senator and a former chair of the Miami-Dade Democratic Party, is his opponent. She is a strong candidate, with endorsements including AFSCME, the union representing Clerk’s Office employees, United Teachers of Dade and Ruth’s List Florida. She flipped a GOP-held seat in 2017 to become the first Latina Democrat elected to the Florida Senate.

County voters are fortunate in this race; they have two good candidates to choose from.

But Fernandez-Barquin is our choice.

He has held the office for 15 months, and he has begun to make changes to modernize it and make it more accessible. His experience will serve voters well and ease the transition next year when auditing of county government becomes the responsibility of the Clerk of Courts office.

Fernandez-Barquin, a lawyer who was elected three times to represent Florida House District 118, has made some consumer-oriented moves, including using a mobile clerk of courts unit at community events, offering online payment plans for traffic tickets and periodically waiving collection fees to help reinstate suspended driver licenses, a program known as Operation Green Light. He also has pushed a property fraud registration system so residents can be notified if there’s a change on their deed.

He acknowledged that other counties are ahead of Miami-Dade in providing online records to the public by using AI to redact protected information. He said it remains a “long term goal” to improve public access to records. He said he has met with AI technology vendors to begin the process. If elected, he should prioritize making records more available.

Taddeo said waiving collection fees is a start but said there’s much more to do in a state where we “are criminalizing people for simply being poor.” She also promised to publish a yearly report to the taxpayers to show how county money is being spent, a good, consumer-oriented idea that we’d like to see.

Both candidates said they want to honor Ruvin’s legacy and also modernize the clerk’s office. That should include making public records more easily available.

An appointment by the governor gives Fernandez-Barquin a leg up on the job. If he is elected, his first allegiance must be to this entire community — not to Tallahassee or state Republicans. As a legislator, he sponsored the 2021 “anti-riot” bill that was a priority of Republican leadership, a bill that was an over-reaction to the Black Lives Matter protests. We have not forgotten that.

He has made some missteps in office, too, including issuing lanyards to his employees with his name on it, which feels like an unfair way of boosting name recognition. He said the employees did not have to wear the lanyards but, clearly, the imbalance of power would make employees feel uncomfortable if they chose not to.

Questions have also been raised about whether Barquin should take a leave of absence to campaign. The county charter says any appointed official who qualifies for election for positions such as court clerk should do so. A Barquin spokesman insisted the charter provision does not apply because Barquin is filling an “elective” not “appointed” office. We’re not sure we agree. Certainly, the charter language needs to be modernized.

Overall, though, Fernandez-Barquin seems knowledgeable about the workings of the office and the need to modernize and create more access. The Miami Herald Editorial Board endorses JUAN FERNANDEZ-BARQUIN for Miami-Dade Clerk of Courts.

BEHIND THE STORY

Who decides the political endorsements?

In advance of local and state elections, Miami Herald Editorial Board members interview political candidates, as well as advocates and opponents of ballot measures. The Editorial Board is composed of experienced opinion journalists and is independent of the Herald’s newsroom. Members of the Miami Herald Editorial Board are: Amy Driscoll, editorial page editor; and editorial writers Isadora Rangel and Mary Anna Mancuso. Read more by clicking the arrow in the upper right.

What does the endorsement process look like?

The Miami Herald Editorial Board interviews political candidates to better understand their views on public policy and how their policies will affect their constituents. Board members do additional reporting and research to learn as much as possible about the candidates before making an endorsement. The Editorial Board then convenes to discuss the candidates in each race. Board members seek to reach a consensus on the endorsements, but not every decision is unanimous. Candidates who decline to be interviewed will not receive an endorsement.

Is the Editorial Board partisan?

No. In making endorsements, members of the Editorial Board consider which candidates are better prepared to represent their constituents — not whether they agree with our editorial stances or belong to a particular political party. We evaluate candidates’ relevant experience, readiness for office, depth of knowledge of key issues and understanding of public policy. We’re seeking candidates who are thoughtful and who offer more than just party-line talking points.

This story was originally published October 2, 2024 at 5:23 PM.