Democrat Notches Party's First Win in Decades in Major Red State Mayor's Race
The state that gave Republicans their biggest win in the 2022 midterm year gave Democrats a reason to cheer on Tuesday — and gave both parties reason to look hard at next year’s midterms.
Campaigning as a “proud Democrat,” Miami-Dade County Commissioner Eileen Higgins won Miami’s mayoral runoff election over a Republican endorsed by President Donald Trump, the Associated Press reported.
And it wasn’t even close.
Higgins bested Cuban-born former Miami City Manager Emilio Gonzalez by about 19 percentage points, according to the Associated Press.
In doing so, she not only made history as the first Democrat running as a Democrat to win the Miami mayoralty since 1998, but she also became the city’s first woman mayor.
And Democrats nationally were quick to note the race’s potential implications for the 2026 midterms, after Democratic wins in November in New Jersey and Virginia, as well as democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani‘s victory in the New York City mayoral race.
“Tonight’s result is yet another warning sign to Republicans that voters are fed up with their out-of-touch agenda that is raising costs,” Ken Martin, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, said in a statement, according to Fox News.
Technically, the mayor of Miami is a nonpartisan position, but the mayor’s race was an openly partisan contest.
Higgins, as the Associated Press noted, brought in big Democratic names for support, including former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Arizona Sen. Reuben Gallego, and former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel.
Gonzalez meanwhile had Trump’s full-throated support. In a Truth Social social media post on Monday, he called Gonzalez “FANTASTIC.”
“It is a big and important race!!!” he wrote. “Vote for Republican Gonzalez. He is FANTASTIC!”
Tuesday’s results also stand out because Florida was once the country’s biggest swing state, but has become firmly Republican in recent years.
In 2022, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’ decisive re-election victory was the brightest point for the GOP. While the party won narrow control of the House, the anticipated “red wave” never fully materialized. It took until the 2024 election, with Trump at the top of the ticket, for the Republicans to win the Senate.
However, the city of Miami itself, like many urban areas across the country, is stronger ground for Democrats than the rest of the state. Democrats hold a 23,000-voter lead among registered voters, Politico reported prior to Tuesday’s voting, and Democratic candidate Kamala Harris defeated Trump in the city by 1 point.
However, Trump won the state as a whole by more than 13 points.
But Trump himself won’t be on the ballot anywhere in the 2026 midterms. Republican Party candidates will be.
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