The city of Doral has a new mayor today after voters on Tuesday chose former Councilwoman and Miami-Dade School Board Member Christi Fraga over Councilwoman Claudia Mariaca, 55% to 45%.
There were also two new council members elected on much narrower margins. Both Rafael Pineyro and Maureen Porras beat opponents Susie Castillo and Ivette Gonzalez Petkovich, 51% to 49% and 52% to 48%, respectively. It was a flip for both. Gonzalez left the first round in August with 43% to Porras 38% and Castillo had a 10-point lead over Pinyero.
Castillo had run on a slate with Mariaca and Gonzalez. Meanwhile, Fraga ran on a slate with Porras and Pinyero.
The election was also sort of a snub to former Mayor J.C. Bermudez, who was elected to the county commission in August, because all three candidates he had endorsed lost.
“It’s the will of the people and you have to move forward,” Bermudez told Ladra Tuesday night. “We’re going to have to evaluate but there was probably a higher Republican turnout today than expected.”
Fraga is the GOP’s pick, even though she abandoned the party for several years as an independent. The Republican leadership — State Reps. Alex Rizzo and David Borrero, Hialeah Mayor Esteban Bovo, Medley Mayor Robert Martell and Coral Gables Mayor Vince Lago — endorsed Fraga. Future Speaker Daniel Perez contributed to her campaign. Her consultant was David “Disgustin” Custin, which is Lt. Gov. Jeannette Nuñez‘s go-to hitman.
Read related: Christi Fraga won’t resign now so voters can elect a school board replacement
Even the endorsement from former Councilman Pete Cabrera, who got 27% of the vote in August for a third place finish, didn’t help Mariaca.
According to their campaign finance reports, Fraga had more money to get her message out than Mariaca did. Fraga collected $295,018 — including a $10,000 bundle from developer Lewis Swezy — while Mariaca got almost $225K, as of Dec. 8.
In the council races, both of the better funded candidates won. Castillo raised close to $118,000 compared to Pinyero’s $64K and Porras raised almost half as much as Gonzalez ($48,765 to $89,295).
The election must be certified this week before the winners can be sworn in Dec. 21 for the first city council meeting.
Doral elects new mayor, Christi Fraga, and two new city council members added by Ladra on
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