Winners and losers in Miami-Dade’s special District 5 commission race

Winners and losers in Miami-Dade’s special District 5 commission race
  • Sumo

Yes, we already know that former State Sen. Alex Diaz de la Portilla is the biggest loser in the special shotgun wedding election in Miami-Dade District 5, getting shut out of the runoff by Zoraida Barreiro and Eileen Higgins — his third loss in a hisif.

Fifth, if you count his brothers’ defeats. 

And, yes, Higgins is the big winner, with an upset that surprised even herself.

But, as usual, there are other winners and losers from the race. And they are:

WINNERS

Miami-Dade Democrats — Local Democrat leadership put a lot of effort and money into the non partisan race backing Higgins, the sole Democrat against three Republicans (Carlos Garin doesn’t count with only 5%). The party paid the pricy consultant’s bills. Even Tallahassee Mayor and gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum reached out, tweeting to voters during early voting that they should support Higgins. And it is the third special election win for them in six months, with Sen. Annette Taddeo beating former State Rep. Jose Felix “Pepi” Diaz and lobbyist Javier Fernandez beating the much better financed Andrew Vargas, a proxy for former State Rep. and U.S. Ambassador Carlos TrujilloNo doubt Juan Cuba is in a good mood these days.

Women — No matter what happens in the runoff June 19, there will be another woman on the commission, and that is a good thing because it will make the dais more balanced. While there can never me an even split among 13 board members, it was 8 men and 5 women when Bruno Barreiro, who resigned from this seat to run for Congress, was on the dais. No matter what, it is now 7-6.

Christian Ulvert — After helping Annette Taddeo this pretty much solidifies Ulvert as the go-to golden boy for special elections. But that is not all he’s done. He has also now beat a Diaz de la Portilla three times: First in 2012 with Jose Javier Rodriguez against ADLP in House District 112, then with J-Rod again against Miguel Diaz de la Portilla for the Senate in 2016. And now this. Eh, just another notch in his belt. Over the past decade or so, Ulvert has built an operation to help Democrats get elected. There was State Rep. Luis Garcia, J-Rod (three times), Miami-Dade Commissioner Daniella Levine Cava, former Miami Beach mayor and gubernatorial candidate Philip Levine. Watch: The Democrats are going to name a sandwich after him. And then he’ll be even more cocky.

Voters — After weeks of terrible negative attacks against the two dynasty candidates — even Higgins got a swing or two in there — voters will likely get a reprieve. Not from all the negative mail. Just from the really ugly kind. There might still be some reference to the Bruno love for the Marlins deal or overly dramatic concern over Higgins’ lack of history here. But it’s not going to be evil. En otras palabras, now that Alex is gone, nobody will be calling anyone a communist whore.

LOSERS

“Crazy” Joe Carollo — The Miami Commissioner endorsed ADLP and even went with him to distribute pastelitos and swag at campaign events in elderly housing and comedores.  It could have been a tit tat thing, since ADLP helped Carollo win his commission seat last year. Or it could just be that the Dean has burned so many bridges and friends that he is forced to scrape the bottom of the barrel.

Carlos “Mr. Giveaway” Gimenez — The Miami-Dade mayor endorsed ADLP and his family — and principally his son CJ Gimenez, the mediocre but well-connected lobbyist — reportedly worked on the senator’s campaign. Now they can go back to hanging out in Joe Carollo’s office.

Did I forget someone? In either column? Please feel free to share in a comment below any winners and/or losers that escaped Ladra’s attention.

Until the next election — which happens to be in 27 days.

8 Responses to "Winners and losers in Miami-Dade’s special District 5 commission race"

  1. This is really messed up. The good one was Alex Diaz de la Portilla. Now we are stuck with two idiots that are incompetent.

  2. Hi Melissa,

    The Miami Herald, the newspaper that agreed with me that experience matters and DIDN’T ENDORSE Ms. Higgins, is your standard for comparison? That’s not a reasonable argument.

    Ms. Higgins is a great person, made a lot of money, and moved to Miami for her own reasons. I’m glad there are people who can live in Miami happily while “living alone and paying bills.” How does that make her a better candidate, again?

    I’m glad Ms. Higgins lives such a care free life to volunteer and be part of the solution. Would you care to elaborate the solutions Ms. Higgins has implemented in the short 4 years she’s been here?

    As for Zoraida qualifications, let’s list what I know off the top of my head: open for immigrants (that’s a big one for me), mother, healthcare professional, senior advocate, stable family life, educated, clean background (no arrests, foreclosures, etc.), long time district resident, well known.

    Don’t get me wrong, the worst thing you can say about Zoraida Barreiro is that her last name is Barreiro and she is married to Bruno Barreiro. Plus, she raised money through PACs. But none of this is disqualifying to me. You can say she hasn’t sat on boards or been involved (but you can argue the same for Mrs. Higgins), one because of their busy schedule, other because they haven’t been here long (you can guess who by now).

    Ms. Higgins is a lovely lady (very smart) and like Zoraida has her issues (nobody is perfect). But I’d like to say that my concerns of Ms. Higgins are definitely a bigger concern to me than that of Zoraida and for me clearly disqualifies Ms. Higgins from consideration. These concerns are: Being the clear Democratic Party candidate in this non-partisan election (without the help of the Democratic Party and supporting labor unions, would we even be discussing her?)… Aren’t I supposed to read that this election is more about how much people hate Donald Trump then whatever issues Ms. Higgins represents, or any issues of concern we voters face?! Instant DQ! Then there’s the ridiculously little amount of time living here, the amount of outside money spent to support her campaign from secret union funds and C4 organizations that don’t disclose it’s donors to pay for Christian Ulvert and the get voters out to vote in the six figures. I’m all for progress. But progress without transparency is more of the same in disguise.

  3. Henry- For someone who insinuates himself to be a a ‘true’ Miamian, you know very little about the ‘political game’ here. You have an issue with Eileen receiving $ from her family or others out of the district? But you don’t have an issue with the PACs and lobbyists that have maintained a stronghold (read: noose) on politicians for decades. Here: read the link below which will give you an unsightly glimpse into the belly of the beast. As for Eileen’s ability – her ability to live alone in the most expensive county in the state? Her ability to sit as a volunteer on numerous nonprofit boards serving our county and work alongside them to address/advocate for solutions??? She doesn’t just meet and listen to residents concerns. She then she sets out to meet with electeds and community organizations. I guess I missed the Herald article where Bruno and Zoraida solved all those issues on low wages, child advocacy, etc. Before judging, be informed, be educated:
    https://www.voterfocus.com/CampaignFinance/candidate_pr.php?c=miamidade&el=27

  4. To my respondents:

    I’ve met Eileen Higgins too and she is super nice. But from what I read here and in the Miami Herald, the only reason why Higgins has the votes she received was because there was a lot of outside support and money with a partisan agenda behind her. My dog Chip could do as well as Higgins with the kind of money and hundreds of out of town workers that were pushing people to elect a “democrat.”

    Zoraida Barreiro has something that sets her apart from Higgins, a life here in the district (heck the state!) knowing the problems working families face, paying a mortgage, raising children, and advocating for seniors.

    I liked Zoraida since I met her in the city commission meeting last year, too. She listened to my concerns back then too. And I don’t mind that she keeps a low profile as long as she remains accessible.

    I’m sure Higgins will make a good elected official but until she’s lived here a little longer and demonstrated to me that she’s dedicated to Miami instead wherever it is she moved here from, I’m going to pass on her.

  5. Zoraida might be a nice wife to Bruno but she is definitely NOT prepared to make decisions re the County’s $8 Billion Budget and sophisticated land use issues. (Few of the current commissioners are qualified either…)

  6. Dear Henry, You clearly state why Zoraida is NOT the best candidate. All those ‘votes’ are due to perceived allegiance to Bruno. I met Zoriada during the City Commissioner race – she is very nice. But nice does not mean she’d be a great representative for the district. We should be so lucky to have someone knowledgeable, working on behalf of ALL the people. Just look at what is happening in DC with a president who knows even less than we had all thought before his election. Not only did Eileen attend and participate in events throughout the community(and yes, including social media and Spanish radio) for the election, she has been doing so right along. Her community engagement is not a ploy – it has been her way of living, to make Miami-Dade an even better place. And, if we are counting numbers- please note that Eileen also dominated the early voting period. So, you are correct in one thing- to get out the vote (as a newcomer, with no family dynasty name) – that does take someone pretty special – and that is unique for Miami-Dade ‘politics’. And that is why Eileen deserves your vote. I hope you take the opportunity to meet with her and learn for yourself firsthand.

  7. Bruno Barreiro caused so much damage during his 20 years in the seat that a fresh face is needed. Remember, Bruno has been the go-to guy for billboard companies wanting more illegal billboards. If you see a new billboard in Miami-Dade County chances are it because of Bruno. And taxpayers will be paying off the $3 Billion debt on the Marlins Stadium for the next 50-80 years.

  8. Zoraida Barreiro is a winner, too. How popular do you have to be in 2018 to bring out serious votes without a website or social media presence (and from what I hear no radio ads or attending almost 0 debates)? Except for Election Day turnout, she was leading the way.

    It’s incredible Miami politics.

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