There are eight candidates vying for the Miami Commission seat in District 2 — which covers the shoreline from Coconut Grove up through Brickell and downtown to Morningside — in what may be a testament to the vulnerability of short term incumbent Sabina Covo, who was elected in a special election last February to replace Ken Russell, who resigned to run for Congress.
It’s almost as if it were an open seat.
Covo has been a disappointment to many voters and her boasts about cracking down on corruption are downright hilarious when you see the picture of her next to Commissioner Joe Carollo at some event at the Tower Theater, which Pollo Joe took over from Miami Dade College. Then you read her campaign finance reports and you see the same names that give to Carollo and Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla, who was arrested in September on public corruption charges, including bribery, money laundering and unlawful compensation.
Between her campaign account and her Dream Miami political action committee, Covo has raised more than $675,000, according to the most recent reports. This includes a $10,000 bundle from developer Sergio Rok’s multiple companies, $5,000 each from developer Jeffrey Berkowitz and Ray and Rene Gonzalez, owners of the transportation services contracted by the county and many cities, another $5,000 from lobbyist/consultant Barbara Hardemon, Miami-Dade Commissioner Keon Hardemon‘s aunt, and from Russell Faibisch, the co-founder of the Ultra Music Festival, and from Aabad Melwani, the operator of the Rickenbacker Marina, at least $4,000 from developer Tibor Hollo and $3,350 from multiple lawyers at Bilzin Sumberg, including lobbyist Al Dotson and Anthony De Yurre.
Read related: Commissioner Sabina Covo billboard boasts fight vs corruption — what fight?
She reportedly refunded the $15,000 given to her a billboard company trying to get approval for LED signs in Miami parks, which she ultimately voted down. But her Dream Miami PAC also has a $10,000 contribution from former Miami Commissioner Marc Sarnoff, who lobbies for the billboards.
Even donations that are not bundled are from the same ol’ special interests. That includes lobbyists like Iris Escarra, Carlos Lago, Ron Book, Javier Fernandez, Manny Prieguez, Luis Gazitua. And then the non lobbyists are mostly identified as real estate investors or developers, many with projects in the city.
Not a good look for someone who boasts she is a reformer.
What Covo really is, is a Christian Ulvert special, being pushed by the Miami-Dade Democratic Party, reportedly being groomed for higher office. The thinking goes that it didn’t work for Russell because he’s not a Hispanic woman.
For now, everyone is talking about a recent poll that has Covo and longtime activist and banker Damian Pardo heading into the runoff. Pardo, one of the original SaveDADE’s (now SAVE) founders, is, unfortunately, also Carollo’s appointment to the city’s LGBTQ Advisory Committee. Carollo has also given financial support to Pardo’s Gay 8 Festival. That’s why he is one of the platinum sponsors. Eso cae mal.
Pardo is also practically self-funding the race. He has loaned himself $165,000 of the $252,800 in his campaign account, according to the most recently filed finance reports. He has a lot of small donations from teachers, architects, retail employees and other regular Joes. And there’s no obvious bundling. But there are some interesting maximum contributions.
Former Miami-Dade Mayor Alex Penelas gave Pardo $3,000 between his own and his business or family accounts. Former Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine, Miami Beach Commissioner Ricky Arriola, former Miami City Manager Joe Arriola and political consultant Alex Miranda, who is also working the campaign, each gave $1,000.
Read related: Miami Commissioner Sabina Covo disappoints, faces seven challengers
James Torres, president of the Downtown Neighbors Alliance, reportedly comes in third in the poll. That’s probably because he already has a base of 30,000 downtown residents. He is also in third place in fundraising, with $52,615 at last count. Attorney Eddy Leal, former counsel to Mayor Francis Suarez comes in fourth in the poll and the money race, with $20,175. The other candidates are in single digits and haven’t raised even $7,000.
And Covo knows who her two biggest threats are. That’s why her TV ads attack both Torres and Pardo and nobody else.
The biggest attack on Covo comes via documentary filmmaker, podcaster and political commentator on the loose Billy Corbin and Because Miami with a video that makes a parody of the Lola song by The Kinks. It also pokes fun at the time when Covo “forgot” the pledge of allegiance at her first meeting.
“Endorsed by the Dems of Miami-Dade, where they’re obviously comfy with more of the same freaking bozos. B. O. Z. O. Bozos.” Sing along everybody. “She’s completely unqualified for this gig. Yeah, she’s just DLP in a fancy wig. Oh, that’s Covo. Please don’t vote for Covo. No, don’t vote for Cohhh-vohhh.”
Thanks, Billy, for ruining a perfectly good song forever.
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I call BS on that poll.
The last D2 election had a lot of polls, and they all said that Zilber was gonna win. Remember Zilber? The guy was a cartoon cut-out crook, a corrupt judge that got run out of the courthouse on a rail for the kind of petty thievery that would have gotten a teenager fired from Wendy’s. And THAT was the guy all the polls said was winning, the guy most of the commissioners and the mayor endorsed, the guy Marc Sarnoff and Joe Carollo were shaking every tree for, the guy that all the lobbyists and unions supposedly “smart money” gave millions to.
Now Marc Sarnoff and Carollo and all the “smart money” lobbyists are with Covo, a softer version of Zilber. Sure, Covo might not be voting for all the special interest plays with the evil grin Zilber would have had… but at the end of the day, she is still voting for them. Covo’s predilection might be for slamming back a few wine glasses too many before giving speeches, and not for unfiltered rage and hate of her colleague Carollo. But if they vote the same way and take money from the same people, what’s the actual difference between her and “el loco” Joe?
Here’s my take. I think Covo comes in third, behind James Torres and Damian Pardo. If she makes the runoff, she’ll be a distant second and basically wave a white flag, kind of like Teresa Sarnoff in 2015.
For Miami’s sake, I hope it’s James Torres who wins in the end. Think what you think of him, he shows up and walks the walks on the issues — on homelessness, funding more police, fighting against insane development like the LED billboards, protecting parks. And most importantly, he’s the only candidate that’s consistently out there telling the mayor and Carollo that he won’t stand for their corruption.
Pardo is OK, a bit arrogant maybe, but nothing awful. My real fear with him is that, if he wins, he doesn’t have the stomach to go toe-to-toe with Joe Carollo, the mayor, Vicky Lopez (and DLP, if the voters in D1 send him back). More likely, he cuts a deal on Day 1 with all of them to roll over and play dead, while the rest of them keep robbing the City blind.
Sabina Covo Very gently tread into the house Joe Carrollo preetty much controlled since the fights with Ferrer and daddy Suárez. This is an amazing accomplishment in its own right and includes friendly DLP. Que molleja, chica. Imagine how difficult tha is.
Covo is an accomplished business woman and former journalist. By the time Ulvert captured her through the Democtratic Executive Committee, Covo was already a strong woman with a genteel manner que te ha confundido
D2 needs a well diverse Commissioner, and that person is James Torres. He has lead the way in making our District a better place in terms of Quality of Life.
He has knocked on doors and listen to many issues and also is not afraid to take on the Mafia of Carollo/Alex/King/Reyes.
We need James Torres in a time of crisis.
James you have our vote.
Billy Corben is brilliant. And yes, Covo is too dumb and much too influenced by the sleazy lobbyist Christian Ulvert to represent Miami’s taxpayers.
Covo has been a horrible commissioner…She is following the Ken Doll Russell tradition of never showing up to the office and doing nothing to slow or stop corruption. Russell voted to kill the 100 acre Melreese Park. Covo is being funded by “all the usual suspects”. Notice disgraced ex-commish and now billboard lobbyist Marc Sarnoff is funneling money to Covo?
We can’t deny that a vote for Pardo is also a vote for Carollo. After all, Pardo is Carollo’s city board appointee. Pardo has received tens of thousands of dollars from Carollo, and Carollo is a Platinum sponsor of Pardo’s organization.
Pardo has not been seen all this time in City Hall only when he decided to run for Commissioner and a video he made against Carollo to try to clean up his image. Pardo has only been an activist for the Gay community, he will not be a partial representative for D2. Don’t make the mistake of voting for Pardo.
Pretty great that Corben is using Lola to trash Covo when his king Damian lost out on the SAVE endorsement for being anti-trans. Two sexist assholes who deserve each other.
Hispanic pols , learned from Miami pols. It was natural that we would try to rise to the local government positions It was done with mindling tolerance from local pols Valdes was the first to cross the line He retired, because he paid attention natural aging it’s too bad , that what followed, hasn’t done justice to the first.
Actually being a Hispanic period , woman or man here REGARDLESS of party will give you a pass that non Hispanics will not get .
DUUUUH the person is Hispanic so they must be better then the person who is not Hispanic .
Sad indeed as we only screw ourselves over .
” What Covo really is, is a Christian Ulvert special, being pushed by the Miami-Dade Democratic Party, reportedly being groomed for higher office. The thinking goes that it didn’t work for Russell because he’s not a Hispanic woman.”