What is possibly the nastiest race ever in the city of Coral Gables ended Tuesday with the election of a lawbreaking newcomer who used a shadow Trojan political action committee to attack his opponent with lies.
Attorney Jorge Fors beat former Commissioner Ralph Cabrera, 51% to 
49% with a 173-vote lead, which is not a mandate but enough to win the seat. Only provisional ballots remain to be counted, but the gap seems too wide for it to make a true difference.
It was close all the way to the end and Cabrera never came close to the 753-vote lead he had on Fors in the first round, when there were four wannabes running in Group 4.
Read related: Coral Gables voters return Raul Valdes-Fauli, send two to runoff
The first votes reported Tuesday were absentee ballots and Cabrera got 51% of those, which represented a slight 87-vote lead. But with 87% of the precincts reporting, those same percentages switched sides and Fors was winning with a 128-vote lead. That expanded to 166 votes with 96% of the precincts reported.
By then, Cabrera — who entered the runoff with 39% of the vote to Fors’ 30% — had conceded defeat.
Cabrera was cast by Fors as a pro-development career politician, but both had development and real estate interest money in their campaign. Cabrera raised $55,450 during the two weeks leading to the runoff and Fo
rs raised $37,175. Their totals raised were $184,920 and $166,425, respectively.
But someone — we don’t know who — also spent at least $50,000 on five mailers from a shadow Trojan PAC on Fors behalf. The Jensen Beach-based Leadership for Florida’s Future has no expenses and no contributions listed for March, so we won’t know who the new commissioner’s benefactors are until May 10th or 11th.
Read related: Secretly-funded PAC attacks Ralph Cabrera with mystery mailers, lies
If even then, because the people who run the PAC told Ladra early on that the first mailer was not sent by them.
Voters elected Tuesday a man who committed homestead exemption fraud, 
claiming an exemption on this Little Havana condo he did not live in for eight straight years. This is something you have to fill out and apply for every year in March. So it’s not like he made a one time mistake.
The fact that he “self reported” months after he opened a campaign account and three months before the election — also right around the time Ladra started asking around about it — does not mean that he didn’t try to cheat his neighbors, indeed all of us, by paying less property taxes than he was supposed to. For eight years.
Read related: Florida Bar investigates candidate Jorge Fors for homestead fraud
They elected a man who is under investigation by both the Florida Bar and the State Attorney’s Office and whose political action committee smeared Cabrera with vicious lies in an attempt to make voters stay home, which apparently worked.
There are 33,144 registered voters in Coral Gables and 6,026 voted, representing just over 18%. The first round April 9 had a 26% turnout, which means that more than 2,400 voters decided to stay home for the runoff.
Commissioner Fors must be so proud.
Nasty race in Coral Gables ends in win for lawbreaker Jorge Fors added by Ladra on
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Nicolas,
Stop your whining. Welcome to the real world.
A disbarred attorney arguing about the behavior of an attorney in good standing with the bar. Give me a break
Dear Ms. Ramos and Mayor Valdes-Fauli:
E-mail this morning to Mayor and City Attorney:
As the Dade County Charter provides, please place me on the next available Gables Commission Agenda, in the Public Comments section, so that I might address, in the time allotted me, the impropriety of swearing in Jorge Fors as a Commissioner in light of the concerns rightly expressed by Commissioner Lago as to the “Trojan Horse” PAC funding of his campaign. Please advise as to the date and time of the Agenda that I will be on. Jack Thompson
John B. Thompson, J.D., M.A.
5721 Riviera Drive
Coral Gables, Florida 33146
305-666-4366, cell 305-588-3005
[email protected]
April 25, 2019
Public Corruption Unit
Eleventh Circuit State Attorney’s Office
Miami, Florida Via e-mail to [email protected]
Re: Formal Complaint Re Jorge Fors Campaign for Coral Gables Commissioner
Dear Public Corruption Unit:
I am a United States citizen more than eighteen years of age. I have been a resident of Miami-Dade County since 1976, and I have been a registered voter in Coral Gables for thirty-eight years. I believe I thus have standing to raise the following concerns for further investigation by your Unit:
On Tuesday, April 23, 2019, the City of Coral Gables had a run-off election between Ralph Cabrera and Jorge Fors for the office of City Commissioner. Mr. Fors won by a scant 173 votes of more than 6,000 votes cast.
During the election a number of mailed attack ads costing tens of thousands of dollars and containing demonstrably false information about Mr. Cabrera were sent to Coral Gables voters purportedly by “Leadership for Florida’s Future.” I hereby provide the links to the news coverage of all this done by the highly-regarded former Miami Herald reporter Elaine DeValle:
https://politicalcortadito.com/2019/04/23/nasty-race-coral-gables-jorge-fors/
https://politicalcortadito.com/2019/04/22/secretly-funded-pac-attacks-ralph-cabrera-with-mystery-mailers-lies/
https://politicalcortadito.com/2019/03/22/coral-gables-pac-hit-ralph-cabrera-fake/
I also attach for your perusal one of these mailers. There were others.
As you can see, the most remarkable aspect of this situation is that Leadership for Florida’s Future firmly denies having sent these mailers.
Coral Gables Commissioner Vince Lago says the following about all this, which I believe underscores the legitimacy of this formal complaint, given Mr. Lago’s reputation for honesty and forthrightness:
Coral Gables Commissioner Lago: “This is the first time in Coral Gables that I have seen this negative campaigning with blatant lies based out of a shadow Trojan horse PAC,” said Commissioner Vince Lago.
“The idea that you can just be ambiguous and attempt to destroy not only someone’s political career but their character… that to me is unacceptable,” Lago said, adding that he is concerned about the PAC’s investment.”
A number of questions suggest themselves:
• What PAC, if any, sent these expensive mailers?
• Did the Fors campaign in any fashion coordinate with those making these secret-source attacks?
• Is there any nexus between this “Trojan horse PAC” and the brothels on Eighth Street that benefit from having Jorge Fors on the Commission?
• Do Mr. Fors other’ alleged ethical lapses suggest a pattern here?
• Should Mr. Fors be suspended from performing his duties as Commissioner until such time as the facts are known, which may either implicate or fully exonerate him?
What we do know is that Mr. Fors, when formally and in writing was asked by me to use his efforts to get to the bottom of this “shadow Trojan horse PAC (to use Mr. Lago’s term), he refused to respond. He had an absolute and affirmative duty to get to the bottom of all this, and he chose not to do so.
If you want to reach Ms. DeValle for more information about all this, you can reach her at [email protected].
Please proceed.
Regards, Jack Thompson
It should not go unmentioned that Commissioner Lago was an active participant in the smear campaign perpetrated on this blog and elsewhere. Shameful and unbecoming of an elected official.
In recent years, myself and many others have grown completely disillusioned with Commissioner Lago.
Ladra, another fraud you should look at is Alex DLP, he does not live in the appartment he claims to live. He is living in the gables with His older brother and parents.
Mr. Lopez, Mr. Harakas, Mr. Chacon, Steve, WhatDidYouExpect, Tom, TellingItLikeItIs, Shadow Trojan PAC, Jose, and anyone else who is thinking about leaving a comment in the future…
Show some respect.
Not just to Ralph Cabrera, but for his entire family and supporters. Talk about nastiness, each of your comments have left ME nauseated and disgusted. Please get over yourselves and find something better to do with your time. Ladra has told it like it is, and if you can’t handle that then maybe you should be reading something else. Don’t come here just to be rude.
What about the 2,918 voters who cast their ballots for Cabrera? Are you going to condemn them for supporting a candidate with years of experience, background, and institutional knowledge? It’s easy to target one individual, but it’s hard to acknowledge and respect the opinions of almost 3000. Maybe consider that for a change.
I would hope that my comment is enough to deter anyone from continuing to comment with rude remarks and disrespect. Maybe now you’ll see who else reads these articles and you’ll think twice about what you are going to say next.
Ms. Vecchio, Mr. Thompson, and Ms. Lauzurique, thank you for your kind words and endless support. You too deserve the proper respect. And to those 2,918 voters who support my father, thank you!
Regards,
Nicolas Rafael Cabrera
Son – I commend you on requesting such decency. If your father had shown this decency that you now ask of others, he would have won. That more voters knew about his antics than didn’t is the reason he lost.
You must be a Trump supporter. Just make up stuff as you go
Good news for Cabrera supporters:
There are some interesting things going on that Mr. Fors should be concerned about:
The Florida Bar has opened a formal complaint OF ITS OWN against Mr . Fors baes upon well-sourced news articles. If that process goes a certain way Mr. Fors will have a real problem. If The Bar does nothing then fine.
Secondly, we are all going to find who actually spent the undisclosed $50,000 false attack ads on Cabrera. The PAC whose name is on them says it wasn’t them.
If those facts go a certain way (don’t know if they will) Fors could be suspended and a new election ordered. May Mr. Fors’ past conduct has not been repeated. We’ll see
Dr. Martin Luther King liked to say “The arc of the moral universe is long but it bends toward justice.” What arc is George Fors on? We shall see.
Cabrera’s check should have cleared by now, you can stop with the nonsense. Maybe your employer should have treated the residents with more respect, he may have if he did so. Never heard a complement about the guy, only that if you know to pay you get to play….
Mr. Lopez, your baseless accusation is ridiculous on its face. Mr. Fors and Commissioner Mena both also advertised on Political Cortadito. Their consultant paid for the space because of my audience, not because of what I write. So did Mr. Cabrera. All the checks have cleared.
But, if I was in fact pay to play, I would have written gloriously about Mr. Fors, since his ad and Mena’s (who supported him) paid more, in total, than Mr. Cabrera, who I have supported for years. It has absolutely nothing to do with who advertises on the website, and this race should prove that because I did not go with the “highest bidder.”
Again, Mr. Cabrera got 2,918 people to vote for him. Only 173 more voted for Fors. That is not a mandate either way.
And I’ve heard compliments about Cabrera. I assume you have, too, even though you don’t want to believe them. I never heard a compliment about Fors, however… in fact, we never heard of him before this race.
What respect does Mr. Fors treat residents with when he cheated on his property taxes for eight years in a row?
Ladra doesn’t owe anybody anything. But we can’t say the same thing about Mr. Fors, now, can we?
Ms. Vecchio:
Oh please, give me a break. Your glorification of Ralph is nauseating. As has been pointed out by others, Ralph’s spiteful and ugly character – for which he has earned quite the reputation – was on display again this election. He used this blog to smear both of his opponents and allowed his henchmen to email and share links to defamatory posts about Olazabal and Fors – ALL THE WHILE claiming to be the only “civil” and “positive” candidate. Do you think CG residents are stupid, Ms. Vecchio? They are not. And that is why CG has rejected Ralph “again and again and again”….this time in favor of a first time candidate.
A career in politics must be difficult when you are categorically disliked. One can only hope that Ralph calls it quits once and for all and stops wasting everyone’s time and energy – including yours.
Mr. Harakas, you seem to forget that 2,918 people voted for Ralph. He may not be as disliked as you think.
Jorge Fors won by a slight 173-vote margin — by your standards, he is not very liked either — and only because his secretly funded PAC mailers were able to suppress the vote. There was a gap between the general and the runoff of more than 2,400 voters. The turnout went from 26% to 18%.
Not exactly what you call a mandate. And now you have a commissioner who has shown a wanton disregard for the law. He did not just cheat on his homestead exemption for eight years — which is documented — he also hid behind a PAC that smeared Ralph Cabrera with lies. Who does he owe now?
Nobody used this blog to smear anybody. First, it’s not a smear if it’s true. Tell me one thing I wrote that wasn’t true. I bet you can’t. Secondly, Ladra did all the investigative work herself and everything is documented or sourced. Just ask the property appraiser’s office.
Remember, I’ve been covering Coral Gables for more than 10 years. With or without Cabrera, I would have covered this race and would have exposed Jorge Fors for the lying cheat he is and reminded people about Carmen Olazabal’s illustrious past. Please don’t give Ralph any of the credit. That was all me.
Ladra
Whatever you claim to be, future candidates would be wise to steer clear of you. Every candidate you support loses. Your record is 0 wins in this decade.
Mr. Harakas, you seem new to Political Cortadito. So let’s do a quick review.
Ladra supported U.S. Congresswoman Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, State Rep. Cindy Polo, Miami-Dade Commissioner Eileen Higgins, State Sen. Annette Taddeo, Miami Commissioners Ken Russell and Manolo Reyes, Miami Beach Commissioners Michael Gongora and, in her city run, Kristen Rosen Gonzalez, and Homestead Mayor Jeff Porter.
And that’s just off the top of my head. There are probably more.
You can’t see straight through your hate and can only resort to lies and BS. Again. You still cannot refute a single thing written about Mr. Fors so you lash out with more falsehoods.
Ladra sticks to the facts.
The Federalist Papers were written with pen names by Hamilton, Madison, and Jay. It worked for them, or do you have a problem with history?
I always find it so ironic how the cowardly Cabrera critics refuse to use their full names or use a sarcastic moniker when blasting their crude and offensive rhetoric which consists of mostly baseless allegations and crass opinions.
But the Cabrera voters make it Chrystal clear who they are and why they staunchly supported the more qualified candidate who ran his campaign with class and dignity. What Ladra wrote was based on actual facts not cut and paste blatant lies and photo enhanced despicable graphics circulated “anonymously”.
Oh and by the way “Tom”, Ralph (along with his children) knocked on thousands of doors 7 days a week for many many months speaking with thousands of residents. He offered his personal mobile number to all residents and spent countless hours talking with them about their concerns. This may have been on afternoons, evenings and weekends while you were out enjoying the amnenities of the City of which he helped establish during his many years of service and is trying to preserve.
Let’s show some respect for a man who has resided here for 52 years, raised his beautiful children here and owns a business in this City. Someone who had the bravado and courage to put himself out there for the good of the City he loves whilst sacrificing precious time not pursuing other endeavors which would be much more enjoyable than campaigning.
I think some of you “know it alls” are forgetting how on point he was during his last term regarding many issues which came to fruition even forcing resignations of certain high level staff due to their deceit and lies to the Commission.
Personally, I moved to Coral Gables during the “Camelot” years. I think it was a kinder, gentler, graceful and more elegant place under the tutelage of the so called “Old Guard”. That is the Gables I fell in love with. So, go ahead link me in with the “Town Crazies”.
Frankly, many from this “new generation” frighten me with their uninformed and brash opinions, scant knowledge of the rich history of our City and how becoming an authentic and genuine Public Servant takes long term commitment and great personal sacrifice.
Let’s see what happens when a resident calls one of the “new generation” during a Holiday dinner or early on a Sunday morning with a complaint demanding it be resolved ASAP. Will they respond and resolve the issue? Ralph Cabrera certainly did, again and again and again.
Our loss, nobody’s gain from this election.
I do not understand why “anonymity” is allowed by Ladra. This is not alcoholics anonymous. Real names of those that leave opinions on this format should be required. Those that hide behind cute little names like “No Mas” or ‘Tom” or “TellingItLikeItIs” are cowards that lack the testicular fortitude to stand behind their opinions. Hidding under the cloak of a fake name makes your opinion the equivalent of used toilette paper. Once used it is useless.
The Federalist Papers were written with pen names by Hamilton, Madison, and Jay. It worked for them, or do you have a problem with history?
It appears Coral Gables voters hate over development and that they dislike politicians. Slesnick might have become Mayor if developers and lobbyists hadn’t dumped money into Valdes-Fauli’s account.
Wonder Why The same Magnify Glass is Not used for All ? Is Mr. Cabrera a Lobbyist or a Consultant (the Same) Maybe The Time will tell ?
Gustavo, what in the world are you talking about? Even Fors did not raise this issue.
We are going to get to the bottom of who funded the anti-Cabrera false attack ads. The election may be set aside if the facts on that break a certain way.
Decent and ethical? Who are you kidding. He bragged about being a member of the Gables Chamber and Rotary Clubs when it is well known that he had dropped out of those clubs long ago and members disliked his “attitude” when he was a member. Good riddance!. Say good night Ralphie Boy!
“Nasty race in Coral Gables ends in win for lawbreaker Jorge Fors”
Never before has such an unfit candidate been elected to our city commission. He may have the shortest tenure in our cities history if the investigation by the state attorney’s office comes to an end as expected. I am not a sore loser. I don’t mind losing to a better candidate. My candidates have lost before. But we didn’t. WE lost to a better deceiver who ran a very unethical campaign based on unfounded fear of the annexation of little Gables and with the backing of the disgusting moteluchos from SW 8 Street.
Time will tell. Ralph Cabrera ran a very decent and ethical campaign. That no one can take away from him. It was an honor to be in his corner and will do so again in a heart beat.
Maybe if Cabrera ran his primary campaign like a gentleman, instead of being a coward and attacking his opponents while hiding behind de valle and Maria Cruz, things would have turned out differently. Carmen Olazabal couldn’t wait to endorse Jorge Fors. Same goes for Mayor Cason. It’s hard to be elected to public office when you’re a spiteful person who surrounds yourself with nasty, spiteful people.
You should write fiction for a living
This website was responsible for much of the nastiness in this race, so the commentary and description of this race is sort of hilarious. How many articles were written by Ladra to try to help her friend Ralph? Shameless.
PAC or no PAC, both candidates raised PLENTY of money to run an election in Coral Gables. The voters decided. Period. And as usual, they chose the candidate who worked the hardest and knocked on the most doors. Endorsements don’t win elections. Support from the town crazies doesn’t win elections. Using a blog like this for free campaigning doesn’t win elections. Hustling for votes wins elections. The haters can make up conspiracies and attack reputations, and post photos of Fors in college, but Fors won because he out-worked Cabrera and his support group hit more houses. He had clear thoughts on the issues.
Cabrera followed Lago’s lead like a puppy dog but didn’t realize that Lago has ticked off half the town with his ego-driven vanity projects and condescension. His support doesn’t have as much juice as they hoped and he will be in big trouble if he runs for Mayor. The support of the town crazies doesn’t help.
Meanwhile Cabrera was two-timing the Mayor, pretending to be on his team this time even though everyone knows he’s really tight with the Slesnicks. But no one wants that old guard anymore. That was made very clear this election cycle, and really the last election as well. Jeannett and Ralph think they’re Gables royalty but they’re really just has-been politicians yearning for the old days. Hopefully they get the message this time. This town is more progressive now. Time to move on and let the next generation have their time.
Dearest Tom (if that is your real name), what nastiness do you speak of? Is it because I exposed Mr. Fors homestead exemption fraud? Or his traffic history? Or the fact that he used a shadow Trojan PAC to do his dirty work? Nobody made up any conspiracy. He did all these things.
You say PAC or no PAC but the PAC was vital in suppressing votes and, I dare say, got Fors the victory. We don’t know who funded at least $50,000 worth of mailers. Mailers full of lies. It could be wholly funded by developers for all we know. You may not care, but I and others certainly do. There are disclaimer and disclosure laws for a reason. This violates the spirit of the law for sure, and perhaps the law itself.
Wouldn’t be the first time Fors violates the law. Is that what you like about this new generation?
Ralph enjoyed a diverse board of support, including both the incumbent mayor and the Slesnicks. What’s wrong with that? He had young leaders like Lago and Pat Keon and old leaders like Dorothy Thomson. He had the police and the firefighters and the gays. That diverse support is a perfect example of what we need, not just at the local level but statewide and nationally.
Can you realistically expect residents to vote TWICE in April? These runoff elections are a waste of time and taxpayer $$$. Fors ran a better campaign. Ralph had the endorsements of Lago, Keon, and the Herald … and he’s spending big bucks touting Dorothy Thompson’s endorsement? Seriously??? Bad advice by El Gordo. Too bad.
John B. Thompson, J.D., M.A.
5721 Riviera Drive
Coral Gables, Florida 33146
305-666-4366, cell 305-588-3005
[email protected]
April 23, 2019
The Honorable Mayor Raul Valdes-Fauli
Commissioners Patricia Keon, Vince Lago, Frank Quesada, and Mike Mena
City Manager, City Attorney
City of Coral Gables
Coral Gables, Florida Via e-mails to each of the above
Re: Possible Fraud in Fors/Cabrera Race and Its Consequences
Dear Mayor and Commissioners:
I have been a resident and voter in Coral Gables for thirty-eight years. As such, I believe I have legal standing to request the following:
I hereby formally request that the swearing in of Mr. Fors as Commissioner be delayed until such time as it is determined what is the identity and what is the operation of the “shadow” political action committee (PAC) that funded, possibly illegally, the false, scurrilous, and highly consequential attacks ads on Mr. Cabrera. But for these ads, the mailing of which may be the result of fraud and mail fraud, it is highly likely Mr. Fors would not have had his narrow 178-vote victory in the balloting.
Commissioner Lago has himself questioned the legitimacy of these ads. The ads purport to have been funded and placed by Leadership for Florida’s Future, but the principals thereof categorically state they have had nothing to do with the ads. This raises the specter of criminal activity which could serve to void the results of this election. Governor DeSantis can suspend Mr. Fors from his office should he be sworn in and should the facts, yet unknown, break a certain way.
Mr. Fors was formally asked by me in writing to get to the bottom of who was in effect clandestinely funding his campaign. He did not respond. What happened here constitutes, on its face, a complete thwarting of Florida’s campaign finance disclosure laws, and it paves the way for the possible voiding of the election results. Swearing in Mr. Fors should be the last thing the City should do.
Regards, Jack Thompson
If the facts as to the shadow PAC are as feared then Mr. Fors may be removed from office per statute. Stay tuned.
Mr. Fors has sown the wind with his lapses and will reap the whirlwind. Bet on it.
The better candidate won. Hands down. Cabrera conceded.. So should you.
Sour grapes. Ladra, you and your candidate are sore losers.
I look forward to giving Commissioner Fors the chance to practice Good Government.
Am I disappointed? Yes, Jose. It is hard to believe that someone who obviously and very definitely committed homestead exemption fraud would be elected. In Coral Gables, anyway. Especially with the ghost-funded nasty campaign.
But yes, he’s got a chance to practice good government and surprise us. Please forgive me if I don’t expect much from someone who cheated the rest of us by cheating on his property taxes and then used a shadow PAC to spread vicious lies about his opponent. We still don’t know who paid for those mailers. You may not care. Ladra does.
He may be a commissioner now. But he is also a liar and a cheat. And we will keep an eye on Commissioner Fors and Coral Gables, as we always have done, and let everyone know where the multiple investigations on him go.
Love, Ladra