Democrats scored a major victory in Miami on Tuesday. The party ended nearly three decades of Republican control as Democrat Eileen Higgins won the city’s mayoral runoff and became the first woman ever elected to the post.
DecisionDesk HQ called the race less than 10 minutes after polls closed. Early and absentee voting already showed Higgins with a nearly 20 percent lead over Republican Emilio Gonzalez.
Unofficial numbers from the Miami-Dade County Supervisor of Elections reported a 59 to 41 percent result. Gonzalez called Higgins at 7:30 p.m. to concede.
“Tonight, the people of Miami made history,” Higgins said after the results were announced.
The win breaks a 28-year GOP hold on the Miami mayor’s office. It follows a campaign in which both parties invested heavily, despite the race officially being nonpartisan.
Higgins ran as a Democrat and received support from Pete Buttigieg, Sen. Ruben Gallego of Arizona, and former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Democrats highlighted her victory as a significant indicator ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
“With her runoff victory tonight, Eileen Higgins will be Miami’s next mayor—the first woman in the city’s history and the first Democrat in nearly 30 years elected to the office,” the Democratic Party said on X.
Republicans rallied behind Gonzalez. He was endorsed by President Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis. Trump urged Miami residents to back Gonzalez just two days before the election. The push ultimately fell short.
Gonzalez later told supporters that he and Higgins “both have our city’s best interest at heart.” He added that he was glad the race ended without “great controversy.”
Higgins’ victory marks several milestones. She will be the first Democrat to lead the city since the 1990s. She will also be the first woman to hold the office in a city founded by a woman, Julia Tuttle. She becomes the first non-Hispanic mayor in recent years as well.
Despite clear partisan divisions, both candidates focused on similar issues. They highlighted affordability concerns, housing pressure, corruption in city government, overspending, and aggressive overdevelopment.
Higgins, originally from Ohio and raised in New Mexico, emphasized expanding affordable housing. Some voters said they hoped she would curb the rapid construction reshaping Miami neighborhoods.
Gonzalez is a Cuban-American Army veteran. He previously served as Miami’s chief administrative officer, city manager, and the head of Miami International Airport. He used his campaign to spotlight rising frustrations over taxes, development, and the city budget. “Nobody’s afraid to say that our budgets are bloated,” he told supporters. “Nobody’s afraid to say that there’s overdevelopment and that our neighborhoods are being destroyed.”
Democrats said their candidates either won or overperformed in nearly 90 percent of key 2025 contests. They immediately pointed to the Miami results as another warning sign for Republicans. They also said it shows shifting political momentum ahead of the 2026 fight for control of Congress.
Miami had long been considered reliably Republican at the mayoral level. Tuesday’s result changes that dynamic. It delivers a rare Democratic breakthrough in one of Florida’s most high-profile cities.