There are already seven Coral Gables residents who have expressed an interest and willingness to run for one of the two commission seats that are up for grabs next April.
Both Commissioners Pat Keon and Vince Lago have said that they are going to run for the mayor’s seat, being vacated by Raul Valdes-Fauli. They could always change their minds at the last minute. So could any of the candidates lined up to replace them in Group 2 and Group 3.
In Lago’s Group 2 seat, we have four potential hopefuls so far: Attorney Rhonda Anne Anderson; downtown property owner, perennial candidate and YouTube sensation Jackson “Rip” Holmes; former Miami City Manager staffer and onetime president of the Women’s Republican Club Miami Federated Claudia Miro; and retired banker and arts and LGBT advocate Jose Valdes-Fauli, the mayor’s openly gay brother.
In Keon’s Group 3, we have three possible wannabes hasta ahora: Accountant Javier Baños, an ally of Miami Commissioner Joe Carollo‘s who is working with Gables activist Ariel Fernandez (who failed a bid for commission in 2015 in a five way race where Holmes also lost); civic activist and lifetime resident Kirk Menendez, who grew up at the Youth Center before it got all snazzy; and Robert Michael Telleria, who, yeah, nobody knows who he is. His LinkedIn says he’s the assistant VP of a professional staffing firm and a real estate broker for 10 years while he went to Florida International University and got an MBA.
Read related: Coral Gables mayoral race in April shapes up as Pat Keon vs Vince Lago
Anderson, Menendez and Talleria all opened campaign accounts in October and did not report raising any funds. Neither did Rip, though he opened his account first, back in August of last year.
Claudia Miro — who worked as a legislative aide to former State Rep. Julio “The Good One” Robaina and, in 2012, as the Deputy Director of Coalitions for the Mitt Romney for President campaign in South Florida — also opened her account in October, but she raised $20,000 before the end of the month, according to her campaign report.
Jose Valdes-Fauli — who has served as president of the Florida Grand Opera and the Bass Museum as well as on the boards for Health Crisis Network (now Care Resource), Miami-Dade County’s Art in Public Places, the Cultural Affairs Council and Florida International University — has $16,850 raised since February, including a $5K loan to himself.
Baños is the one with the fat account so far. He has been fundraising since January and has raised $115,850 — well, minus $20K he loaned himself. Not terrible for a first time candidate. So, he’s the only one who has been able to buy about $10,000 worth of campaign materials — literature, t-shirts, car magnets, face masks — and pay for a campaign website.
These commission races may not be as attention grabbing as the mayoral race between two polar opposites on the commission with friends and enemies already, but the contests between Javier Baños, with all his Miami baggage, and homeboy soccer coach Kirk Menendez promises to be fun and the face-off between Claudia Miro and Jose Valdes-Fauli could go down that hyper partisan road.
But wait. The qualifying deadline isn’t for months and the City Beautiful is famous for last minute additions and changes.
The election is in April. The mayor’s is a two-year term and each commissioner is elected to a four-year term.
7 candidates so far line up for two Coral Gables commission seat races in April added by Ladra on
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