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Democratic County Commissioner Eileen Higgins and Republican candidate Emilio González, backed by Gov. Ron DeSantis, will advance to a Dec. 9 runoff to determine Miami's next mayor after no candidate received more than 50% of the vote.
The two leading candidates emerged from a crowded field of 13 and will face off to succeed term-limited Republican Mayor Francis Suarez.
If no candidate receives 50% or more of the vote, the top two candidates must compete in a runoff in the mayoral race.
Higgins, the Miami-Dade County commissioner elected in 2018, represents parts of Miami Beach, Downtown, Brickell, Coral Way, Little Havana and West Flagler, according to the county website.
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Miami Democrat Higgins is a former engineer, marketing executive and national director of the Belize Peace Corps. position she accepted in 2006. She later worked as a Foreign Service officer in the United States Department of State.
“There will be no drama,” Higgins said during his closing speech at an Oct. 16 mayoral debate. “There will be no corruption. There will be no yelling. It's just me, every day, working on your behalf to get things done: the things you've told me you want to happen in this city. The city you love. The city I love. The city that should be the best place in the world.”
Mayoral candidate Eileen Higgins greets and thanks her staff and supporters as she moves toward a runoff during her election watch party at the Yotel in downtown Miami on Election Day, Nov. 4, 2025. (Carl Juste/Miami Herald/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
He campaigned on affordability, restoring confidence in Miami City Hall “by reducing the bureaucracy that prevents homeowners and small businesses from moving forward,” funding police and first responders, improving transportation and protecting the environment, according to his campaign website.
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An aerial view shows the downtown Miami property on Biscayne Boulevard, next to the Freedom Tower, which has been earmarked for former President Donald Trump's future presidential library. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
President Donald Trump, who also resides in Florida, did not endorse any candidate.
Although the mayoral race did not attract the same national attention as New York or the gubernatorial races in New Jersey and Virginia, it was marked by past scandals and political coups by Democratic and Republican candidates. In September, a Florida judge blocked the city's plan to delay the November election until 2026 without voter approval, following a lawsuit from mayoral candidate and former City Manager Gonzalez.
Gonzalez, the leading Republican contender, was endorsed by DeSantis and Florida Republican Sen. Rick Scott. He previously served as a bilingual surrogate for Trump's presidential campaign, worked on the president's transition team, and was later named a senior fellow at the America First Policy Institute.
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City of Miami mayoral candidate Emilio González speaks during a press conference outside his home in Miami on July 16, 2025. (Matías J. Ocner/Miami Herald/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
He campaigned to modernize city services, reduce property taxes, loosen regulations for small businesses, increase police presence and reduce government spending, according to his campaign website.
He said at the mayoral debate on October 16: “We need reforms and we need them urgently,” after a loss of public confidence in local government.
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“Our municipal government has failed our residents,” he said at the debate. “That's why we're here, all of us. We've let them down. We've abandoned them and they don't trust us.”
“Public service and being mayor has to be vocational,” he added. “It's not about making money, it's not about making my ego bigger, it's not about preparing for another office or clicking bait or this or that. It's vocational, you have to want to do it.”
The 2025 Miami mayoral race also included former Miami mayors Joe Carollo and Xavier Suárez, father of current Mayor Francis Suárez, and Alex Díaz de la Portilla, Christian Cevallos, June Savage, Alyssa Crocker, Elijah John Bowdre, Ken Russell, Laura Anderson, Michael Hepburn and attorney Kenneth James DeSantis, who is not related to Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Fox News Digital's Michael Dorgan contributed to this report.
