Alex Fernandez might be just a communications aide to Miami-Dade Commissioner 
Rebeca Sosa, but the longtime government worker bee — who landed there after former Commissioner Lynda Bell was beaten last November — has got some bigger political pals.
Fernandez will wed his longtime partner Robert Wolfarth at a Washington, D.C., ceremony Monday (Congratulations!) to be officiated by none other than Democratic Party leader and U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Shultz — the first time a voting member of Congress officiates a gay wedding.
But it doesn’t end there. The bipartisan affair will also count with the presence of Republican Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Miami Beach Commissioner Deede Weithorn — who Fernandez used to work for before Mayor Philip Levine had him fired (and Ladra bets he regrets it now) — and former Miami Beach Mayor Matti Herrera Bower and Commissioner Michael Gongora, the first openly gay Beach commissioner.
Read related story: Miami Beach: A tale of two aides, Fired and Hired
“These aren’t just elected officials or even friends, they are part of my family,” Fernandez told Ladra Wednesday. “These are people that s
tood by our side in good times and in bad, loyal friends who are part of your life, not just when it’s politically convenient.”
Fernandez, a political junkie like Ladra, said he was honored and “overwhelmed with joy” that Wasserman Shultz, who he and his partner worked for two years with on Florida marriage equality, would bind them legally.
Wasserman Shultz got certified to she could officiate the marriage, which will take place at the Florida House, which is right behind the U.S. Supreme Court that is considering the constitutionality of same-sex marriage this month. She will be the first voting member of Congress to officiate a gay wedding, but her stance has long been public. Wasserman Shultz, chairwoman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, invited the first gay couple married under Florida’s law to the president’s State of the Union address this year.
Fernandez and Wolfarth, who have been together for almost nine years, were going to get married in Florida — but then the U.S. Supreme Court took up the case and the opp
ortunity arose to send a message, he said.
“How much more symbolic can you get to send this message of love and commitment and equality,” Fernandez said.
“To me, it shows the world that Robert and I are as loving, as committed, as loyal as any member of society or any other American family. Robert and I are no different from any American family.”
Well, I don’t know about that. Ladra doesn’t know too many couples who get married at Florida House by a voting member of Congress.
Or get a pre-nuptuals thumbs up from Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who extended her congratulations at the announcement of the upcoming wedding, according to the Washington Examiner.
Or who get mentioned in a House floor speech, where Congressman Ted Deutch lauded the couple’s commitment to community and each other.
“Giving back to their community has been a centerpiece of Robert and Alex’s professional lives and of their relationship. Robert, the grandson of former Miami Mayor William M. Wolfarth, and Alex, a public servant since the age of 15, met on Sept. 25th, 2006 at Miami-Dade County Hall where Alex worked at the time as a press secretary. The two were immediately bonded by a shared passion for public service.”
Fernandez said he keeps dreaming that there will be a shadow of the Supreme Court cast over the sunset exchange of vows.
“To be able to go to Washington and get married in the Florida House after Florida recognizes gay marriage and on the eve of a federal ruling, in this unique moment in history, is something I will treasure forever,” Fernandez said.
Just think how awesome the wedding album is going to be!
Wasserman Shultz to officiate county aide’s gay wedding added by Ladra on
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