The City of Miami will hold a special election on Tuesday June 3 to fill the District 4 commission seat left vacant by the death of Manolo Reyes.
The voters of Miami’s District 4 will decide who should replace Commissioner Manolo Reyes, who died last week at the age of 80, less than halfway through his four-year term.
The late commissioner’s four colleagues on the Miami City Commission voted unanimously on Thursday, after taking public comment, to hold a special election on Tuesday June 3 to fill the vacant seat.
“I believe that the community should decide who their representative would be,” Commission Chairwoman Christine King said. “I believe that is what Commissioner Reyes would have wanted.”
Before the vote, several speakers urged the commission to appoint a replacement to serve until the next general election in November, citing the cost of a special election and low voter turnout as reasons. A handful of speakers also had a candidate in mind – Ralph Rosado of Coral Gate, who addressed the commission himself.
“It would be the honor of a lifetime to be able to serve with each of you and represent a community that I love so much,” said Rosado, the former village manager of North Bay Village. “I’m ready to hit the ground running today if selected for the appointment.”
The estimated cost of the June 3 special election is $380,000, City Clerk Todd Hannon told commissioners. Miami’s District 4 commissioner represents Shenandoah, Silver Bluff, Coral Way and Flagami (find a map of District 4 here).
I hope residents in D4 elect a Commissioner that will represent their interests, and not someone seated to rubber stamp Developers. To do this, be sure to follow the money and see who is donating to candidates campaigns.
I say this as someone who is not opposed to development or new housing, but as someone who lives in a community under siege with increased density and traffic from oversized condos, that fail to adhere to the style and character of the neighborhood.