There's a fight to block voters from picking Miami-Dade's next county commissioner

Will voters get to pick Miami-Dade County’s next commissioner? Not if a majority of the existing commissioners decide to pick one instead.

How to fill the District 5 commission seat left vacant by Eileen Higgins has divided the remaining 12 commissioners, with one camp wanting to hold a special election to fill it and the other wanting to appoint Vicki Lopez, a Republican member of the Florida House. Higgins submitted a resignation this summer that was effective on Nov. 5 in order to qualify as a candidate for mayor of the city of Miami.

A showdown vote is set for Tuesday, when the appointment camp will need a majority to bypass those who want an election in District 5, which includes Miami’s Little Havana and Miami Beach’s South Beach neighborhoods.

Leading the charge for an appointment, according to multiple insiders, is the board’s powerful chairman, Anthony Rodriguez, himself a former Republican House member.



https://amp.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article312953752.html