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Xavier Suarez
Xavier Suarez is running for election for Mayor of Miami in Florida. Suarez declared candidacy for the general election scheduled on November 4, 2025.[source]
Suarez was a member of the Miami-Dade County Commission in Florida, representing District 7. Suarez assumed office in 2011. Suarez left office on November 17, 2020.
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
Eleven 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. The filing deadline for this election is September 20, 2025. Incumbent Francis Suarez is term-limited. Four candidates lead in media attention, fundraising, and polling: 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.[1] 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.[2][3]
Gonzalez is a Florida Treasury Investment Council member and a former Miami city manager.[4] 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."[5] 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."[6] Gonzalez is affiliated with the Republican Party.[7]
Higgins was a commissioner for District 5 on the Miami-Dade County Board of Commissioners.[8] 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."[9] 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."[9] Higgins is affiliated with the Democratic Party.[7]
Russell is a former commissioner for the city of Miami.[8] 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."[8] Russell is also campaigning on expanding the city commission from five seats to seven, saying it would "really help increase accountability and local representation."[8] Russell is affiliated with the Democratic Party.[7]
Suarez served as mayor of Miami from 1985 to 1993 and from 1997 to 1998, and is the father of incumbent Francis Suarez.[10] 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."[10] Suarez is also campaigning on public transportation and writes that he is "pushing to extend free public transit countywide."[10] Suarez is affiliated with the Republican Party.[7]
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."[11] 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."[12] 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.[13][14] 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."[15]
Another candidate, commissioner and former mayor Joe Carollo, may enter the race. Carollo and 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.[16][17]
Laura Anderson, Christian Cevallos, Alyssa Crocker, Ijamyn Gray, Michael A. Hepburn, Maxwell Martinez, 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) | ||
| Christian Cevallos (Nonpartisan) | ||
Alyssa Crocker (Nonpartisan)  | ||
 | Emilio Gonzalez (Nonpartisan) | |
| Ijamyn Gray (Nonpartisan) | ||
 | Michael Hepburn (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Eileen Higgins (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Max Martinez (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Ken Russell (Nonpartisan) | |
| June Savage (Nonpartisan) | ||
 | Xavier Suarez (Nonpartisan) | |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Endorsements
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2020
See also: Municipal elections in Miami-Dade County, Florida (2020)
General election
General election for Mayor of Miami-Dade County
Daniella Levine Cava defeated Esteban Bovo Jr. in the general election for Mayor of Miami-Dade County on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Daniella Levine Cava (Nonpartisan) | 54.0 | 576,970 |
 | Esteban Bovo Jr. (Nonpartisan) | 46.0 | 492,053 | |
| Total votes: 1,069,023 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Mayor of Miami-Dade County
The following candidates ran in the primary for Mayor of Miami-Dade County on August 18, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Esteban Bovo Jr. (Nonpartisan) | 29.3 | 122,135 |
| ✔ | | Daniella Levine Cava (Nonpartisan) | 28.8 | 120,089 |
 | Alexander Penelas (Nonpartisan) | 24.5 | 102,338 | |
| Xavier Suarez (Nonpartisan) | 10.5 | 43,831 | |
| Monique Barley (Nonpartisan) | 5.5 | 22,823 | ||
| Ludmilla Domond (Nonpartisan) | 1.3 | 5,230 | ||
| Carlos De Armas (Nonpartisan) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 0 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.2 | 715 | ||
| Total votes: 417,161 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Robert Ingram Burke (Nonpartisan)
- Williams Armbrister Sr. (Nonpartisan)
- Jean Monestime (Nonpartisan)
- Juan Zapata (Nonpartisan)
2016
| Miami-Dade County Commission, District 7 Primary Election, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Xavier Suarez Incumbent |
72.06% | 18,442 |
| Michael Castro | 27.94% | 7,149 |
| Total Votes | 25,591 | |
| Source: Miami-Dade County Elections, "August 30, 2016 Primary Election," accessed September 8, 2016 | ||
Campaign themes
2025
Ballotpedia survey responses
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2020
Xavier Suarez did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
See also
2025 Elections
External links
|
Candidate Mayor of Miami |
Footnotes
- ↑ 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
- ↑ 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
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Florida Politics, "Poll: Eileen Higgins leads race for Miami Mayor, but not enough to avoid a runoff," August 7, 2025
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 Caplin News, "Meet the 2025 City of Miami mayoral candidates," June 23, 2025
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Eileen Higgins 2025 campaign website, "Homepage," accessed August 20, 2025
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 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
- ↑ 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 offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Miami-Dade County Commission District 7 2011-2020 |
Succeeded by Raquel Regalado |
| |||||||||
