Eileen Higgins made history this Tuesday, defeating her opponent, former municipal administrator Emilio González, at the polls, with nearly 60% of the votes. With her victory, Higgins, 61, also becomes the first Democrat — and someone not of Cuban or Cuban American origin — to hold that position in the last 30 years.
“Tonight, the people of Miami made history. Together we left behind years of chaos and corruption and opened the door to a new stage for our city,” Higgins said in a statement, where he thanked the support to “beat politics as usual.”
Florida’s second-most populous city, is nonpartisan, but was seen from the start as a political battle between Higgins, a Democrat, and Gonzalez, a Republican, after Miami-Dade County — a Democratic stronghold for decades — turned Republican (although the city of Miami gave a narrow lead to Kamala Harris).
That scenario opened the door to a race with an increasingly political connotation, and the fight intensified last month, after Trump gave his “full” support to González when Democrats won important victories in key places such as the governorships of Virginia and New Jersey, interpreted as a rejection of Trump’s policies and a boost for the Democratic Party heading into the 2026 midterm elections. For its part, the Democratic National Committee endorsed Higgins — an unusual move at the level municipal—, placing the election under the national spotlight as a thermometer of the .
Miami has half a million inhabitants, of which more than 70% are Hispanic and almost 60% immigrants. The majority of residents are (30%). The city is just one of 34 municipalities in Miami-Dade, a county that is more than 70% Hispanic.
During the race, the Republican Party compared Higgins to Mamdani — whom Trump called a “communist” during the New York City Council campaign — in an apparent attempt to generate a negative perception among communities of exiles from totalitarian regimes such as Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua living in South Florida.
González, for his part, came into the election reinforced by the support of high-profile politicians within the Republican Party, such as Governor Ron DeSantis and Senators Rick Scott (Florida) and Ted Cruz (Texas). These endorsements earned him the nickname “MAGA mayor” among Democrats.
Donald Trump’s anti-immigrant agenda has Miami-Dade residents have seen hundreds of thousands of Cubans, Venezuelans, Haitians and Nicaraguans, including their own family members, left in limbo after the Government canceled humanitarian programs and protections that allowed them to live and work legally in the country. They have also witnessed how in their yard they have raised claims that they have been accused of human rights violations, while raids on workplaces, arrests on highways and in immigration courts intensify, generating a climate of terror in the communities.
The political effect has been noticeable, and many who supported the Republican president have expressed dissatisfaction with the tactics of the immigration authorities is reflected in the polls, where the majority have shown their rejection of arresting and deporting immigrants who have not committed any crime.
In that environment, Higgins knew how to channel discontent and capitalized on that rejection. During his presidential campaign, he presented himself as a sensitive alternative to the drama of the Hispanic community, promoting respect for immigrants. He has also said that the agreement between Miami police and federal agencies to arrest immigrants known as 287(g) that the city signed in June was “a mistake,” and he will try to overturn it.
The elected mayor has pointed out that the end of the period poses a danger to the city’s economy, by leaving hundreds of thousands of people without work permits, with the corresponding impact on families and local businesses.
He has also shown rejection of the controversial proposal to build Trump’s presidential library there.
The mayor-elect represented Miami-Dade Commission District 5 for seven years, which includes Miami neighborhoods with a high density of Hispanics such as Little Havana, Shenandoah and the river area near the downtown. She is a graduate of the University of New Mexico and Cornell, and has worked as an engineer and marketing executive.
Local Miami politics have been plagued by corruption scandals and have often been described as a dynasty, because many people from the same families have held similar public offices for years. For example, the outgoing mayor, Francis Suárez, is the son of Xavier Suárez, who was mayor in the eighties and nineties, and ran again this year.
13 candidates participated in the race. In the first round, Higgins led with 36% of the votes, followed by González, who obtained 19. Participation at the polls was 21%.
