In a political upset that’s reverberating across Florida and the national stage, Democrat Eileen Higgins has clinched a decisive victory in Miami’s mayoral race, defeating Republican contender Emilio Gonzalez by nearly 20 points. Higgins’ win is historic on multiple fronts: not only is she Miami’s first woman mayor, but she’s also the first Democrat to hold the city’s top office in almost three decades, according to the Associated Press and USA TODAY. The result is widely interpreted as a major setback for former President Donald Trump, who had thrown his endorsement behind Gonzalez, hoping to cement Republican dominance in a city he flipped in the 2024 presidential election.
With all precincts reporting from the December 9, 2025, election, unofficial returns showed Higgins capturing 59.46% of the vote to Gonzalez’s 40.54%. Voter turnout reached 21.34%, with over 37,000 ballots cast—numbers that nearly matched those of the November 4 general election, which itself saw a 36% increase over the previous cycle, as reported by the Miami-Dade County Elections Department. While still lower than turnout for a typical midterm, the surge in participation signaled a city energized by high-stakes issues and passionate campaigns on both sides.
"Tonight, the people of Miami made history," Higgins declared in her victory statement. "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. I am deeply honored by the trust voters have placed in me to serve as the next Mayor of Miami." (USA TODAY)
Higgins’ triumph comes after a campaign that zeroed in on issues of affordability, housing, and community safety—concerns that, she argued, had been neglected as Miami’s population boomed in the wake of the pandemic. "We're facing unprecedented growth, which is a wonderful thing to have, but that means you need a mayor that is focused on the housing affordability crisis," she told USA TODAY. As a longtime advocate for affordable housing, Higgins has championed building on public land and creating a dedicated housing fund. She also pointed to climate change as a driver of the city’s persistent flooding woes, promising infrastructure improvements and greater transparency in government.
But it was the intersection of local and national politics—particularly the city’s controversial agreement with federal authorities allowing police to enforce immigration laws—that set this election apart. Higgins made it clear she intends to explore every legal avenue to unwind the arrangement. "We need to look at all our legal options to ensure that our city police work for our neighborhoods and not on checking residents’ papers," she said at a post-election press conference, underscoring her commitment to community-focused policing rather than immigration crackdowns (Associated Press).
The stakes of immigration policy were made painfully clear in the weeks leading up to the vote. Higgins recounted a recent incident at a local medical clinic forced to terminate 27 employees after federal protections for Venezuelan migrants were revoked. "That’s 27 families without a breadwinner. And a health clinic that’s short 27 employees to take care of people," she explained. "We want a strong border, we want a path to citizenship. We don’t want law-abiding people to be ejected from our country, impoverishing their family and driving our economy into ruin." (Associated Press)
Higgins’ message resonated with a city grappling with both frustration and fear—a shift in voter sentiment she noticed while campaigning. "This is the first election where when I speak to our residents, it’s not just about frustration, it’s also about fear. They’ve never been afraid of their government before. And now they are," she observed, reflecting on how national debates over immigration and policing have seeped into local anxieties (Associated Press).
On the economic front, Higgins didn’t shy away from criticizing Trump’s recent remarks on inflation. While Trump dismissed concerns about rising costs as a "hoax" deployed by Democrats, Higgins countered, "When I hear what the residents have to say about affordability, it’s real. They’re facing expensive rent, expensive property insurance, costs of all sorts of things, especially even now the things they’re buying in the stores due to the tariffs. I think every leader in America needs to think deeply about what they can do to help get the affordability crisis under control for the American people." (Associated Press)
Despite their differences, Higgins acknowledged that she and Trump had occasionally seen eye to eye—most notably on funding for a new transit project, which she praised him for maintaining. Still, the broader narrative of the race was one of opposition: Democrats rallied behind Higgins, while Trump, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, and other high-profile Republicans lined up behind Gonzalez. The outcome, according to USA TODAY, is seen as a warning sign for Republicans in a county Trump won just a year earlier.
Higgins’ background is as varied as it is impressive. Born in Dayton, Ohio, and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico, she holds a mechanical engineering degree from the University of New Mexico and an MBA from Cornell University. Before entering Miami politics, she served as a Peace Corps Country Director in Belize and worked as a foreign service officer for the U.S. State Department. Elected to the Miami-Dade County Commission in 2018, she became its longest-serving member before resigning earlier this year to run for mayor, in accordance with Florida’s resign-to-run law.
As Miami looks ahead, its new mayor faces immediate challenges—and controversies. The Miami-Dade College board recently voted to donate nearly three acres of prime Biscayne Boulevard land, valued at more than $67 million, for a proposed Trump presidential library. A pending lawsuit has temporarily halted the transfer, and Higgins has voiced skepticism about the plan. "We gave away very valuable land to a billionaire for free. That doesn’t make any sense to me," she argued during a televised debate, suggesting that the land could instead fund essential services like food aid and transit (Associated Press).
Next year, Miami is set to host the Group of 20 summit, a decision announced earlier in 2025 with Trump’s support and outgoing Mayor Francis Suarez by his side. The event will thrust the city onto the global stage, giving Higgins an early test of her leadership and diplomatic skills.
When asked if she feared potential retaliation from Trump, given his well-known feuds with Democratic mayors, Higgins was unequivocal. "I am not scared of him, at all," she stated in Spanish, signaling her readiness to confront whatever political headwinds may come her way (Associated Press).
As Eileen Higgins prepares to take office, Miami stands at a crossroads—caught between its changing demographics, pressing economic realities, and the push-pull of national politics. Her victory signals not just a new chapter for the city, but perhaps a broader shift in the political winds of Florida itself.
