Framing his inauguration as a moment of responsibility rather than celebration, Bryan Calvo was sworn in as mayor of Hialeah on Monday, promising to rebuild trust in local government and guide the city into what he called a defining new era.
“For one hundred years, Hialeah has been built by families who believed in work, faith and responsibility,” Calvo said at the start of his address after being sworn in, with his mother, Edith, holding the Bible. “Today, we do more than mark time. We take responsibility for what comes next.”
Calvo, who at age 28 becomes the youngest mayor in the city’s history, described his election not as a personal milestone but as an opportunity and responsibility to be earned. Switching seamlessly between English and Spanish, he underscored his deep ties to the city where he was born and raised.
“Hialeah formed me before any school ever did,” he said, later adding in Spanish that while he studied at Florida International University and Harvard and became an attorney, his character was shaped by the values he learned growing up in Hialeah — work as a duty, family as sacred and one’s word as binding.
He credited his parents — his father from Cuba, his mother from Ecuador — who “sacrificed everything” for a better future, echoing a theme that ran throughout the speech: Hialeah as a city built by successive waves of families pursuing opportunity.
“What began as open land and hard work — full of farms, factories and small businesses — became a place of refuge for families seeking freedom and opportunity,” Calvo said, calling Hialeah “living proof that the American Dream is still alive.”
But he also acknowledged growing frustration among residents who feel disconnected from City Hall. He pointed to rising and unpredictable water bills, increasing property taxes and insurance costs, and confusion over who is making decisions on behalf of the public.
“Eso no es progreso, es desorden,” he said — That is not progress, it’s chaos.
Bryan Calvo, 28, center, shows his signature on his first executive order after being sworn in as mayor of Hialeah at the Milander Center on Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in Hialeah.
In one of the strongest sections of his speech, Calvo sought to redefine the role of local government. “Government is not here to impress you or to serve those with access and power,” he said. “It is here to serve you.”
He announced that his administration will be guided by three pillars: integrity, reform and progress.
Integrity, he said, means governing transparently and serving the public interest. Reform means fixing what does not work, even if it angers special interests. Progress means delivering results, not promises.
“Do not judge this administration by what it says today,” Calvo told the audience. “Judge it by what it does tomorrow.”
Addressing city employees directly, Calvo emphasized professionalism and public service, saying workers will be respected but also held to high expectations. He pledged investments in infrastructure, protections for seniors and support for small businesses.
Looking beyond City Hall, Calvo placed Hialeah within the broader growth of South Florida, citing major development projects, new investment corridors and global sporting events that are drawing international attention to the region.
“Hialeah will not be left out of the future,” he said. “Hialeah will be part of the future.”
He outlined a vision of the city as an engine for entrepreneurship, logistics and workforce development, while supporting emerging industries in energy, manufacturing, healthcare and technology — with an emphasis on ensuring working families benefit from that growth.
“Leadership is not measured in speeches,” Calvo said near the end of his remarks. “It is measured in results.”
Closing on a note of service rather than legacy, Calvo said he did not come to City Hall “to make history,” but to serve ”a city built on sacrifice.
“The first hundred years of Hialeah were built by sacrifice,” he said. “The next hundred years must be built with purpose.”
Shortly after his speech, Calvo signed a series of executive orders that he told the Miami Herald he planned to sign on his first day in office. Among them was a moratorium on retirement payments for elected officials — a decision that directly affects current council members and will require their approval for a permanent revocation at a later date.
He also signed an order creating a task force to conduct a comprehensive review of business licenses in the city with possible ties to Cuba’s regime. The task force will be responsible for identifying such businesses, determining whether allegations of those connections are accurate and making recommendations on potential action.
In addition, Calvo signed an order temporarily pausing certain city contracts while suspending others as part of a broader review of municipal operations and spending, a move he told the media would save taxpayers more than $180,000.