Robaina look-a-like big hit at JFK

No, folks, that was not Hialeah Mayor Julio Robaina, running for county mayor, at the JFK Library on West 49th Street in the City of Progress for the last day of early voting on Saturday. Ladra sped over there as soon as we got the tip, but didn’t make it in time and missed this […]

A tale of Two Different Carloses

It seems that the only thing Hialeah Mayor and county mayoral candidate Julio Robaina can do these days to try to stop his spiraling numbers and keep the heat off him for possible ties to organized crime and a federal investigation into his finances is to go on the attack — again. A recent TV […]

Mayor Loco: The Recall Candidate

Former Miami Mayor Xavier Suarez, running for county commission in District 7, doesn’t want to work with the current board of his would-be colleagues. In fact, he wants them recalled like former mayor Carlos Alvarez and former District 13 commissioner Natacha Seijas. “We’re going to get three, four, five more commissioners out in the next […]

Suarez runs away after low blow

Former Miami Mayor Xavier Suarez came out swinging at Wednesday’s debate with former State Rep. Julio Robaina (Rep., District 117) and hit him right below the belt, making some in the audience of almost 30 people (minus campaign pros& reporters/bloggers) gasp. It would be easy for him, Suarez stressed, to “get along with the mayor […]

Robaina gets roasted at forum

Hialeah Mayor Julio Robaina is feeling no love from the other 10 candidates in the race to replace recalled Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Alvarez. At a forum Monday night presented by the NAAC, Robaina — who arrived late — got called “so close to” being a crook by Eddie Lewis, who ran for property appraiser in […]

District 7 coulda been a 3-way

There could have been three names on the ballot for the commission seat in District 7. Voters in South Miami and Coral Gables who think that on May 24 they may choose a new commissioner to replace Carlos Gimenez, who resigned last month to run for mayor, may have been ripped off — and could […]

Published story in Biscayne Times

With 11 people in the race to replace recalled Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Alvarez, the May 24 election is almost certain to be inconclusive. It’s highly unlikely any candidate will gather more than 50 percent of the votes, which is needed to win outright. A runoff election is scheduled for June 28. In that race, […]

Gimenez calls Robaina on his flip

Hialeah Mayor Julio Robaina, who has skipped (read: snubbed) several of the mayoral candidate forums or debates in recent weeks (maybe he’s too busy being mayor of “the second largest city in the county” until the day before the election), finally made it to one Monday night. But maybe he should have missed this one, […]

"Education" on "reform" tonight

One of what we suspect will be several “town hall” meetings and forums on the charter reform questions voters will see on the May 24 ballot is in Palmetto Bay Tuesday evening. Commission Chairman Joe Martinez and newby Commissioner Lynda Bell, former mayor of Homestead, have invited the public to “share their input on changes […]

Artiles to sponsor Ladra’s law

Embarassed yet accountable State Rep. Frank Artiles (R, District 119 but he doesn’t live there yet) finally called me back today and said he had no hard feelings. “I know you were just doing your job and congratulations,” Artiles said, but maybe a little sarcastically, not like everybody else. While he will take full responsibility […]