MIAMI — Democrats can now add a major city in Donald Trump’s home state — and one set to host his future presidential library — to its list of off-cycle election wins.
In a Tuesday runoff, Miamians elected Eileen Higgins as mayor, the first woman in the city’s history to hold the job and the first Democrat in 28 years. Higgins, a former county commissioner, defeated Republican Emilio González, an ex-city manager who had the endorsement of Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Though the race and the job of mayor are nominally nonpartisan, the election generated sizable interest from national Democrats and Republicans. Higgins’ win adds to the slew of victories and close calls Democrats have seen this year, including last week’s strong performance in a House special election in Tennessee.
The election could boost messaging for Florida Democrats, who’ve faced setbacks in recent election cycles and have a 1.4 million registered voter disadvantage in this former swing state.
“Tonight’s victory shows that the pendulum is swinging in our favor and that when we commit to relentless, year-round organizing and invest in a long-term strategic field program, we can, in fact, win,” FDP Chair Nikki Fried said in a statement Tuesday night.
Despite the race’s partisan themes, Higgins, a mechanical engineer and former Peace Corp director in Belize, often shunned partisanship in interviews and instead ran a campaign focused on how she would make city government work better and faster to help alleviate residents’ affordability issues.
She and González also agreed the city’s politics had been far too dynastic, dramatic and corrupt, and both called for entering a new era of stability. Miami’s international standing is set to grow in the years ahead, given the city will host FIFA World Cup matches and neighbors Doral, the site of the 2026 G-20 summit. Its population since the Covid pandemic also has surged with wealthy residents who’ve contributed to making life less affordable for longtime Miamians.
“We all want the best for the city we love,” González told POLITICO after a collegial CBS Miami debate against Higgins on Nov. 25.
Higgins went into the runoff having spent more on TV ads than her opponent, and she won 36 percent of the vote during the Nov. 4 election against 12 other candidates. She was a well-known county commissioner for eight years in a district that included the downtown area. On Nov. 4, Higgins also came in first in all five of the city’s commission districts. She replaces outgoing Mayor Francis Suarez, who briefly ran for the Republican nomination for president.
Though Trump won Miami-Dade County by 11 points in November, he narrowly lost Miami, a city of half a million people that has a slightly higher number of registered Democrats than Republicans. The circumstances of the race were also unusual, given that Miami hasn’t seen a runoff since 2001.
Ahead of the runoff, top Republicans were already working to temper expectations. Republican Party of Florida Chair Evan Power called it “Fool’s gold” for Democrats to claim momentum or victory in Florida, dismissing Miami as a place that “leans D.”
Still, Higgins’ victory marks a blow to the GOP, as Miami voters have sent Republicans to City Hall for nearly three decades. Miami-Dade County is also led by Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, a registered Democrat also in a nonpartisan job, who easily advanced to reelection in 2024 without needing to go to a runoff. Other county-wide races saw defeat across the board for Democrats in 2024, after Trump got involved in endorsements.
The expectation that Higgins might win caught the attention of top Democrats across the state and nationwide, who traveled to the Magic City over the weekend to help get out the vote.
The Democratic National Committee sent in volunteers, and on Monday she was joined for a canvassing event by Rahm Emanuel, a former Obama chief of staff, Chicago mayor and Ambassador to Japan who’s weighing a run for president in 2028. Among the visitors to Miami this weekend were Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego, as well as Democratic gubernatorial candidates former Rep. David Jolly and Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings.
Higgins also received an endorsement over social media from former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, also a former mayor and 2020 presidential candidate.
The mayoral race may not have happened at all this year if it weren’t for González. City commissioners voted in June to postpone the election by one year to coincide with the midterms, a move they argued would save money and boost turnout. But the change also would have extended the terms of Suarez and several commissioners. González sued to keep the election in place and won in court.
González is a retired Air Force colonel, former director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and former CEO of Miami International Airport. He had close ties to the White House, having been on the Trump transition team and a founder of Veterans for Trump. He’s also a senior fellow at the Trump-aligned America First Policy Institute. Had he won, he planned to continue that role as well as his job at an asset management firm, given that the role of Miami mayor is considered to be part time.
