"Democrat Eileen Higgins won the Miami mayor's race on Tuesday, defeating a Republican endorsed by President Donald Trump to end her party's nearly three-decade losing streak and give Democrats a boost in one of the last electoral battles ahead of the 2026 midterms. Higgins, 61, will be the first woman to lead the city of Miami. She spoke frequently in the Hispanic-majority city about Trump's immigration crackdown, saying she has heard of many people in Miami who were worried about family members being detained."
"She campaigned as a proud Democrat despite the race being officially nonpartisan and beat Trump-backed candidate Emilio Gonzalez, a former city manager, who said he called Higgins to congratulate her. We are facing rhetoric from elected officials that is so dehumanizing and cruel, especially against immigrant populations, Higgins told The Associated Press after her victory speech. The residents of Miami were ready to be done with that. With nearly all votes counted, Higgins led the Republican by about 19 percentage points."
Eileen Higgins defeated a Trump-endorsed Republican to win Miami's mayoral race by about 19 percentage points, becoming the city's first woman mayor. Higgins emphasized immigration concerns in the Hispanic-majority city and described widespread worry about family members being detained. She campaigned openly as a Democrat even though the contest was officially nonpartisan. The defeated opponent, Emilio Gonzalez, called to congratulate her. The victory gives Democrats momentum ahead of the 2026 midterms and attracted national attention and endorsements from prominent Democrats, while critics framed the result as a rebuke of dehumanizing rhetoric toward immigrants.
Read at www.mercurynews.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]