City Commissioner Damian Pardo spearheaded motions to move city commission elections to coincide with federal midterms and introduce term limits to a governing body he argues is a veritable carousel of familiar faces. City commissioners passed the motion 3-2 at the first reading on June 17; they voted the same at the second reading last Thursday, with Commissioner Christine King, Pardo, and Ralph Rosado voting in favor and Joe Carollo and Miguel Gabela voting against.
Pardo and his proponents argued that moving elections to the same quadrennial cycle as federal midterm elections will increase voter participation from about 15 percent to 70 percent. Opponents contend that the election date change is a power grab that gives current commissioners and Mayor Francis Suarez an extra year in office.
Pardo is two years into his first four-year term, while Suarez and Carollo are in their eighth year and will get a ninth. Commissioner Christine King, in the fourth year of her first term, will get a fifth year, while Commissioner Miguel Gabela, who won a runoff election in 2023, gets a fifth year during his first term.
The commissioners' decision to move their election drew clear disapproval from Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, who issued a June 11 opinion in response to a query from Gabela asking Uthmeier whether the vote would be consistent with the Florida Constitution. In the letter, Uthmeier argues Miami City Commissioners can't change their elections to even years without voter approval.Uthmeier issued a second opinion Wednesday, arguing the vote is invalid.
"Attempting to affect this change by a simple vote by the Miami City Commission alone would clearly circumvent the terms of the county charter and would, therefore, be invalid," Uthmeier wrote."You should immediately cease the process of enacting the ordinance to move the date of municipal elections and change the terms of office for elected officials in the city of Miami."Home to thousands of patriotic Cuban Americans who know better than most about regimes that cavalierly delay elections and prolong their terms in power, the City of Miami owes to its citizens what the law requires.
— Attorney General James Uthmeier (@AGJamesUthmeier) June 25, 2025
My latest letter to the City of Miami: pic.twitter.com/8JGCsb2doi
"The residents of Miami deserve, and are entitled to, the right to make this decision, directly," Uthmeier argues in the opinion.
Uthmeier argued that Miami, with its large Cuban American population familiar with authoritarian regimes, must uphold election laws. He warned that if the city proceeds with the proposed ordinance to delay elections, his office may take legal action to stop it.
Governor Ron DeSantis was a bit clearer in his rebuke Thursday morning.
"It is wrong for incumbent politicians to cancel elections and unilaterally extend their terms in office," DeSantis wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. "It also runs afoul of term limits.
"I'd anticipate a swift legal response to this scheme if/when enacted."
Perhaps DeSantis missed the memo: city commissioners are already working to introduce term limits where none currently exist.It is wrong for incumbent politicians to cancel elections and unilaterally extend their terms in office. It also runs afoul of term limits.
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) June 26, 2025
I’d anticipate a swift legal response to this scheme if/when its enacted. https://t.co/uieGRKsMx3
City Attorney George Wysong disagreed with both Uthmeier's and DeSantis' opinions, telling commissioners there is clear precedent for the move.
"We're not the first in the state to do this, and we're not even the first municipality in Miami-Dade to do this," Wysong said. "And there was no consternation, no pushback."
