Democrat Eileen Higgins has won the Miami mayor’s race, defeating a Republican endorsed by US President Donald Trump and ending her party’s nearly three-decade losing streak to give Democrats a boost in one of the last electoral battles before the 2026 midterms.
“Tonight, the people of Miami made history,” Higgins said in a statement after the results were announced on Tuesday evening.
“Together, we turned the page on years of chaos and corruption, and opened the door to a new era for our city, one defined by ethical, accountable leadership that delivers real results for the people,” she said.
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.
Campaigning as a Democrat despite the race being officially nonpartisan, Higgins beat the Trump-backed candidate, Emilio Gonzalez, a former city manager, who said he called Higgins to congratulate her.
“I just got off the phone with our new mayor,” Gonzalez told supporters, adding that he pledged to support her administration.
Before her victory, Higgins told the Associated Press news agency: “We’re living in the state of Florida, where people are building cages for our residents rather than affordable housing for them.”
The victory provides Democrats with some momentum heading into a high-stakes midterm election next year.
Republican anxiety grows
Republicans in Florida have found strong support from voters with heritage from Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua, because they liken some members of the Democratic Party’s progressive wing to politicians from the governments they fled.
Trump and other Republican members have tapped into those sentiments over the past eight years.
However, some local Republicans are growing increasingly frustrated since November’s elections, when Democrats scored wins in New Jersey and Virginia, where both winning gubernatorial candidates performed strongly with non-white voters.
The results from those races were perceived as a reflection of concerns over rising prices and the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration policies.
Florida’s second-largest city
The mayoral position in Miami is more ceremonial, but Higgins has promised to execute it like a full-time job.
The city is part of Miami-Dade County, which Trump flipped last year, a dramatic improvement from his 30 percentage point loss to Democrat Hillary Clinton in 2016.
As Florida’s second-largest city, Miami is considered the gateway to Latin America and attracts millions of tourists. Its global prominence gives Higgins a significant stage as mayor.
Her pitch to voters included finding city-owned land that could be turned into affordable housing and cutting unnecessary spending.
