#eileen higgins

Eileen Higgins just became the first Democrat elected mayor of Miami in nearly 30 years.

Democrats just flipped the mayor's office in Miami. Eileen Higgins has become the first Democrat to be elected mayor of Miami since 1997 - and the first woman ever.

Democrats can now add a major city in Donald Trump’s home state — and one set to host his future presidential library — to its list of off-cycle election wins. In a Tuesday runoff, Miamians elected Eileen Higgins as mayor, the first woman in the city’s history to hold the job and the first Democrat in 28 years. Higgins, a former county commissioner, defeated Republican Emilio González, an ex-city manager who had the endorsement of Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis, with 60 percent of the vote. “Miami chose a new direction,” Higgins said during her victory speech at the Miami Woman’s Club. “You chose competence over chaos, results over excuses and a city government that finally works for you.”

With all 139 precincts reporting, Democrat Eileen Higgins defeated Republican Emilio T. Gonzalez 59.46% to 40.54%.

But wait, there's more good news!

In a special election for the Georgia State House of Representatives, Democrats flipped a district which Trump won by 12% 13 months ago.

Georgia Democrat Eric Gisler flips a state House seat in district Trump won by double digits, CNN projects

The Democratic victory, in a district that voted for President Donald Trump by about 12 percentage points last year, comes ahead of next year’s critical midterms, when Georgians will vote in closely watched races for Senate and governor. Eric Gisler, a Democrat who owns a local olive oil store, will defeat Republican Mack “Dutch” Guest in the 121st House District, in the northeastern part of the state, near the college town of Athens. Between regularly scheduled elections in Virginia and New Jersey and special elections held on newly redrawn maps in Mississippi, Democrats flipped about 20 state legislative seats on Election Day last month. Those victories came after Democrats flipped two seats in Iowa and one in Pennsylvania during special elections earlier in the year.

Winter is coming for MAGA. With luck, it will last long after the first robin of spring arrives.

Richard Luscombe at The Guardian:

Democrat Eileen Higgins was elected mayor of Miami on Tuesday night in a stunning upset victory that reversed a run of recent Republican successes in Florida. The election of Higgins, 61, a former county commissioner, also added to a string of Democratic wins across the country that have served to highlight the growing level of resistance to Donald Trump in his second presidential term.

Miami-Dade, a county with a significant immigrant population, voted for Trump in historic numbers in 2024, making him the first Republican presidential candidate to win it since 1988. That majority melted away in Tuesday’s run-off as Higgins became the first Democrat in 30 years to become mayor of the city of Miami. After winning 36% of the vote in last month’s election after which the top two candidates moved forward, she bested Republican Emilio González, a former city manager.

Republicans’ determination to retain the office in what was, in theory at least, a nonpartisan race was reflected in the number of party heavyweights who lined up to back González. Trump posted two fulsome endorsements on Truth Social, both spelling González’s name incorrectly, and aligning him with the Trump agenda for “secure borders” and cracking down on “migrant crime”. Higgins, too, focused much of her campaign on immigration. She presented the election to voters as a referendum on the president’s policies, which have included supporting Florida’s Republican governor Ron DeSantis in the construction of the notorious “Alligator Alcatraz” immigration jail, and moves to end temporary protected status (TPS) and humanitarian parole programs for various immigrant groups including Venezuelans, Haitians and Cubans.

Her messaging resonated in Miami, whose inhabitants are 57% foreign-born, according to the 2024 census. “He [Trump] and I have very different points of view on how we should treat our residents, many of whom are immigrants,” Higgins told El País in an interview this week. “That is the strength of this community. We are an immigrant-based place. That’s our uniqueness. That’s what makes us special.”

Higgins will be sworn in as the first Democratic mayor since 1997, when Xavier Suarez, the father of the outgoing incumbent, Francis Suarez, a Republican, was elected. She is also the first woman to lead the city, and first non-Hispanic candidate since the 1990s, Reuters reported. Democrats nationally will see the result as a further strengthening of their position after massively successful off-year state and local elections last month. Before the Miami election, Ken Martin, chair of the Democratic National Committee, said he saw it as a bellwether.

Voting is so important. I keep saying it's essential to come out for off year and special elections and here is the proof. I would like to thank everyone who came out to vote.

The officially nonpartisan contest followed a first round on November 4, where she led with 36% to his 19%, and drew national attention with Democratic backing from the DNC and Republican endorsements from trump and DeSantis.

Miami and Georgia deliver significant blows to the GOP as voters reject extremism, shift left, and set the stage for a historic Democratic resurgence in 2026. Hispanic Voters Lead a Political Earthquake Podcasts (Video — Audio) Summary A political realignment is unfolding, and recent results in Miami and Georgia reveal a Republican Party losing its grip as voters push back against extremism…