Whenever it happens — whether it’s concurrent with November’s mayoral election or a special election right after or a special election next year — the race to replace Miami Commissioner Francis Suarez, who has challenged Tomas Regalado for mayor — may become the most fun to watch.
And the most colorful.
Because not only could Manolo Reyes, a perennial candidate who came within five points the last time, and community activist Denis Rod give Ralph Rosado a run for his money — which could turn this non-partisan race into a Democrat versus Republican thing on one front (more on that later) — but also because there are persistent rumors that two other notable names may jump into the race.
Las malas lenguas are wagging that Former Miami Commissioner Victor de Yurre, who was always under one investigation or another and just lost a circuit court race last August by a comfortable (not for him) 14 points, and disgraced former State Rep. Gus Barreiro, who cannot possibly be thinking of putting himself and his pornographic past back out there after losing the Republican primary last year in House District 112, are looking at a run.
“I’m contemplating it,” de Yurre told Ladra earlier this month. “Turns out, I live in the district that Francis Suarez is vacating.”
But the traffic court magistrate said it was too early for all this jockeying.
“It’s quite premature to be raising money and campaigning when you don’t know when the election is going to be,” de Yurre said.
Suarez told Ladra that he had not yet decided when his resignation effective date would be.
Baby X has to resign by the qualification deadline in September. If it’s effective immediately, the commission seat election can run concurrently with the mayor’s — and Suarez will likely be appointed by his colleagues to sit on the dais for the remaining two months.
That’s what Regalado did in 2009 to make way for Suarez to win his seat the same year Tomas took over as mayor.
But Suarez can choose to make his resignation effective on election day in November, which would give the commission 10 days to appoint someone (and it could be Suarez if he loses to Regalado) to the position until they have a special election. Then they might have one within a few months, at a cost of about $300,000, or they might have one at the next general election, to save money. That means August 2014.
And so maybe it is a bit premature.
Especially since what looks like a largish field of candidates in that small district of only 18 precincts will benefit the one with the most name recognition (read: Reyes, de Yurre and Barreiro) and the most positive name recognition (read: Reyes). Which is why both de Yurre and Barreiro have the luxury of waiting, bolstered by their recent races. De Yurre may have lost the judicial contest but he won those precincts in Miami by 65 percent, for example. Barreiro lost the primary to former State Sen. Alex Diaz de la Portilla by a wide 17 percent margin (silly fool), but was still able to get more than 41 percent of the voters to pick him against the Dean.
They may be branded as recycled career politicians, however, giving the three Rs — Rosado, Rod and Reyes — a chance.
Ladra likes Rod, who is not a gringo despite his name, having come from Cuba when he was 6. He hasn’t just popped in out of nowhere. He has spent the last 30 years serving the community in one way or another. A longgtime member of the Miami-Dade County Community Relations Board and the county’s Asian Community Board, Rod has also been a member of nearly every board and committee in the city: planning and zoning, beautification, Citizens on Patrol.
He really seems to have paid his dues and he also doesn’t seem to be in it for anything else other than to be a public servant. Could there really be one of those?
Part of this might be because Rod seems to be independently wealthy, which I am a bit wary of. Especially when he says he intentionally put all his properties in his mother’s name. He says he made money abroad and lives off of that, plus he serves as an ambassador of type (read: lobbyist) for the People’s Republic of China, and he is quick to say it has nothing to do with politics or ideology.
“It’s economical and cultural,” Rod says, but this is still the one thing about him that sticks at Ladra’s gut.
It doesn’t seem to bother a lot of people, though, as he had a couple dozen supporters at his kick-off Wednesday at La Palma restaurant on Southwest 8th Street (that place used to be called Aqui Me Quedo and made the best discos voladores). The guests included Vicente Rodriguez, owner of La Calle newspaper, one of those periodiquitos that is very politically involved, and several people who work in the office of Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez.
Wait a minute. Isn’t Gimenez supporting Rosado? One would think after spotting his daughter-in-law Barbie Gimenez and his bff and campaign driver Ralph Garcia-Toledo at the Rosado kick-off the week before. Yet here was the mayor’s sister-in-law and two staffers from his office, Jose Bacallao and Maria Machado.
Machado said she has known Rod for years as someone who has been there for the community.
But if everything his supporters say and everything he boasts about is true — and Rod spoke for 20 minutes about everyone he has helped and what he prioritizes (public works and police) — then why did he do so poorly in 2009 when he finished a distant fourth with less than five percent of the vote in the race for the same seat, which Suarez won?
In that race, Manolo Reyes — who seems to keep doing better and better with each incremental race — was within 5 percentage points of Suarez, who won 45 to 40.5 over Reyes, who has thrown his hat in again and is thinking that he came so close last time, this could be his moment.
And Ladra like Reyes, too. And she also likes De Yurre (what political junkie does not?).
The other candidate, the least known at least in political circles, is Andres “Andy” Vallina, with whom Ladra keeps playing phone tag so I know nothing about him. But a google searched turned up an Andy Vallina in Miami who calls himself Gatorman because he traps the creatures.
How cool would this be race now?
Miami race to replace Suarez could be crowded carnival added by Ladra on
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