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Emilio T. Gonzalez (Miami, Florida)
Emilio Gonzalez is running for election for Mayor of Miami in Florida. Gonzalez is on the ballot in the general election on November 4, 2025.[source]
Biography
Emilio Gonzalez was born in Havana, Cuba.[1] He earned a bachelor's degree in international studies from the University of South Florida in 1977, a master's in Latin American Studies from Tulane University in 1986, a master's in National Security & Strategic Studies from the Naval Academy in 1994, and a Ph.D in international relations from the University of Miami in 1997. His work experience included serving in the military, as head of Citizenship and Immigration Services, as city manager of Miami, and as an investment councilmember for the Florida Department of Financial Services.[2]
2025 battleground election
Ballotpedia identified the November 4 general election as a battleground race. The summary below is from our coverage of this election here
Thirteen candidates are running in the nonpartisan election for mayor of the city of Miami, Florida, on November 4, 2025. If it is necessary, a runoff will be held on November 18, 2025. Incumbent Francis Suarez is term-limited. Five candidates lead in media attention, fundraising, and polling: Joe Carollo, Emilio Gonzalez, Eileen Higgins, Ken Russell, and Xavier Suarez.
On June 26, 2025, the Miami City Commission voted to postpone this election until 2026 in order to move city elections to even years.[3] On July 21, 2025, Circuit Court Judge Valerie R. Manno Schurr ruled that the ordinance conflicted with the Miami-Dade County charter because changing the city's election date would require a voter referendum. The ruling means that the election will take place on November 4.[4][5]
Joe Carollo, a city commissioner and former mayor, entered the race hours before the filing deadline.[6] Carollo and Xavier Suarez were mayoral candidates in 1997. Suarez was declared the winner until a Florida appeals court overturned his win on March 11, 1998, due to ballot fraud.[7][8] He has campaigned on his past experience as mayor and said he served "[during] the worst financial crisis in the history of Miami… and Joe Corollo was the mayor who looked for the solutions and led this city out of it."[9] Carollo is affiliated with the Republican Party.[10]
Gonzalez is a Florida Treasury Investment Council member and a former Miami city manager.[11] He is campaigning on reducing taxes and says, "We can eliminate property taxes for homestead property owners while protecting vital services like public safety and infrastructure."[12] He is also campaigning on reducing city work regulations, saying he would "build a workforce to overhaul permitting and licensing—sparking opportunity and empowering residents and entrepreneurs, not just the well-connected."[13] Gonzalez is affiliated with the Republican Party.[14]
Higgins was a commissioner for District 5 on the Miami-Dade County Board of Commissioners.[15] She is campaigning on affordability, and her website says she would support "cutting through red tape and ending corruption so that our city’s government can get to work creating a prosperous and affordable future for all residents."[16] Higgins is also campaigning on improving the city's resilience to environmental disasters. Her website says she will "protect Biscayne Bay, invest in flood mitigations, and secure a resilient future for our city."[16] Higgins is affiliated with the Democratic Party.[14]
Russell is a former commissioner for the city of Miami.[15] Russell is campaigning on affordable housing and said, "The government has to step in and create the right atmosphere and incentives for the world of development to provide the product that we want."[15] Russell is also campaigning on expanding the city commission from five seats to seven, saying it would "really help increase accountability and local representation."[15] Russell is affiliated with the Democratic Party.[14]
Suarez served as mayor of Miami from 1985 to 1993 and from 1997 to 1998, and is the father of incumbent Francis Suarez.[17] He is campaigning on his experience in government and as a private citizen, writing in an opinion piece that he would bring "perspective, steadiness and an even deeper sense of purpose. I can still think, handle public speaking and take decisive action."[17] Suarez is also campaigning on public transportation and writes that he is "pushing to extend free public transit countywide."[17] Suarez is affiliated with the Republican Party.[14]
The changing of election dates has become an issue in the race. Gonzalez sued the city over the ordinance and said, "If we want to move our election, we should ask the voters."[18] Higgins proposed a new referendum to move election years, saying she supports "shortening the next Mayor’s term and putting the question on the 2026 ballot to modernize our democracy without undermining it."[19] Russell opposed the move, calling it a "slippery slope of bad government — where you have good intentions, but you start bending the rules to get there," and supported letting voters weigh in on the issue.[20][21] Suarez supported both moving elections to even years and Gonzalez's lawsuit. Suarez said that he was "directly involved in the selection of counsel and contributed significantly to the strategic approach."[22]
Laura Anderson, [Elijah Bowdre]], Christian Cevallos, Alyssa Crocker, Kenneth DeSantis, [[ Alex Díaz de la Portilla]], Michael A. Hepburn, and June Savage are also running.
As of 2025, Miami has term limits for the position of mayor. Mayors can serve two consecutive four-year terms and can run again after a four year break.
Elections
2025
See also: Mayoral election in Miami, Florida (2025)
General election
The general election will occur on November 4, 2025.
General election for Mayor of Miami
The following candidates are running in the general election for Mayor of Miami on November 4, 2025.
Candidate | ||
| Laura Anderson (Nonpartisan) | ||
| Elijah Bowdre (Nonpartisan) | ||
 | Joe Carollo (Nonpartisan) | |
| Christian Cevallos (Nonpartisan) | ||
 | Alyssa Crocker (Nonpartisan)  | |
| Kenneth DeSantis (Nonpartisan) | ||
 | Alex Díaz de la Portilla (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Emilio Gonzalez (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Michael Hepburn (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Eileen Higgins (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Ken Russell (Nonpartisan) | |
| June Savage (Nonpartisan) | ||
 | Xavier Suarez (Nonpartisan) | |
| ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Ijamyn Gray (Nonpartisan)
- Max Martinez (Nonpartisan)
Endorsements
Gonzalez received the following endorsements. To send us additional endorsements, click here.
- Miami Young Republicans
- Veterans for America First
Campaign themes
2025
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Emilio Gonzalez has not yet completed Ballotpedia's 2025 Candidate Connection survey. If you are Emilio Gonzalez, click here to fill out Ballotpedia's 2025 Candidate Connection survey.
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See also
2025 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Florida Politics, "‘Making Miami work again’: Emilio González, former City Manager, federal admin, enters Mayor’s race," April 10, 2025
- ↑ LinkedIn, "Emilio Gonzalez," accessed September 3, 2025
- ↑ NBC 6 South Florida, "Miami commissioners vote to move elections to even years, despite AG's warning," June 26, 2025
- ↑ The New York Times, "Miami Can’t Delay Its Election by a Year, Judge Rules," July 21, 2025
- ↑ CBS News, "Miami's decision to postpone 2025 election without voter approval unconstitutional, judge rules," July 21, 2025
- ↑ WSVN, "Miami Commissioner Joe Carollo enters city’s mayoral race, says it’s his last public office bid," September 21, 2025
- ↑ Miami Herald, "Xavier Suarez, Miami’s first Cuban-born mayor, plans to run for mayor again," July 21, 2025
- ↑ CNN, "Court Reinstates Carollo As Miami's Mayor," March 11, 1998
- ↑ Political Cortadito, "Commisioner Joe Carollo files initial paperwork to run for Miami mayor," September 19, 2025
- ↑ NBC Miami, "Joe Carollo Wins Miami Commission District 3 Seat in Run-Off," November 21, 2017
- ↑ LinkedIn, "Emilio Gonzalez," accessed August 20, 2025
- ↑ Floridian Press, "Gonzalez Pitches Eliminating Property Taxes for Homestead Residents in 'Second Pillar' of Miami Mayoral Campaign," August 18, 2025
- ↑ Emilio Gonzalez 2025 campaign website, "Emilio T. Gonzalez’s Plan to Fix What’s Broken in Miami," accessed August 20, 2025
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 Florida Politics, "Poll: Eileen Higgins leads race for Miami Mayor, but not enough to avoid a runoff," August 7, 2025
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 Caplin News, "Meet the 2025 City of Miami mayoral candidates," June 23, 2025
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Eileen Higgins 2025 campaign website, "Homepage," accessed August 20, 2025
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 Miami Herald, "Some think I’m too old to be the mayor of Miami. Here’s why they’re wrong | Opinion," July 29, 2025
- ↑ CBS News, "Mayoral candidate Emilio Gonzalez sues City of Miami over postponed 2025 election," July 8, 2025
- ↑ Florida Politics, "‘Reprehensible’: Emilio González, Eileen Higgins slam Miami’s ongoing bid to delay election," August 7, 2025
- ↑ Miami Herald, "It’s official: Miami cancels November election, postpones it to 2026," June 26, 2025
- ↑ Miami Herald, "Outrage followed Miami’s vote to move election. Now some are trying to reverse it," July 4, 2025
- ↑ Political Cortadito, "Former Miami Mayor Xavier Suarez to file for crowded city mayoral race," July 22, 2025
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