The Florida Bar has opened an investigation into the homestead exemption fraud by Coral Gables candidate Jorge Fors, an attorney and former president of the Coral Gables Bar Association. After receiving a complaint from activist resident Jack Thompson, Bar Counsel Richard Coombs responded that they would look into the illegal homestead exemptions Fors claimed for […]
There is likely to be a runoff in the Coral Gables commission race after Tuesday, where none of the four candidates are likely to pull away with more than 50% of the vote. And when former Commissioner Ralph Cabrera is headed for round 2, as expected, he may be better prepared than whoever the other […]
Whoop! There it is! The latest campaign reports are in — the last ones before the Coral Gables election on Tuesday — and, just as expected, Mayor Raul Valdes-Fauli got a windfall from real estate developers and the construction industry. More than $80,000 in seven days! That must have set some kind of campaign record in […]
Looks like the third time is the charm for former Coral Gables Commissioner Ralph Cabrera. Even if it’s just through the process of elimination. Cabrera, an insurance consultant, has tried to get back on the dais twice since he left office in 2013. But both times he ran for mayor against Jim Cason. This time he is […]
The mayoral race in Coral Gables is a rematch between Raul Valdes-Fauli and former Commissioner Jeannett Slesnick. But some people really see it as a do-over of 2017, a second chance to make things right. “Let’s not make the same mistake again,” is not just the headline of an email sent by the Gables Neighbors United group […]
Longtime Democrat political operative Christian Ulvert — who helped put Sens. Jose Javier Rodriguez and Annette Taddeo, Miami-Dade Commissioner Daniella Levine-Cava and Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber into office — wants a seat of his own now. Ulvert is running for city council in Miami Shores and had his kick-off earlier this month. How many chips you think he’s […]
Former Coral Gables Commissioner Jeannett Slesnick — in a bitter mayoral rematch race against Mayor Raul Valdes-Fauli — got a big endorsement Wednesday when former U.S. Sen. Bob Graham, who served 1987 to 2005, gave her his support. Graham — who was also Florida’s 38th governor from 1979 to 1987 — and his wife Adele were among […]
Pinecrest voters rejected a plan Tuesday that would seek $15 million in bonds to pay for approximately 18.5 miles (98,000 linear feet) of pipeline infrastructure so 739 properties can connect to Miami-Dade County water. The vote came down to 63% against and 37% for taxing themselves an additional 23 cents per $1,000 of taxable value, […]
Voters might not be sure if Carmen Olazabal is running for a commission seat against three other candidate — or if she is running against activist Maria Cruz and little ol’ Ladra. The girl has gone off on Maria and I, wasting precious campaign ink on our distaste for her unethical behavior and her role […]
Coral Gables voters got a mailer this week that attacks Ralph Cabrera on development, calling him a “career politician” and saying he approved 40% of the tallest buildings in the city. But nobody is taking the credit. Not only is the figure pulled out of the sky, with no reference to any research or parameters — are […]