Tuesday was a good Election Day for incumbents in Pembroke Pines, where Vice Mayor Mike Hernández and Commissioner Thomas Good successfully fended off challenges and won four more years representing Districts 4 and 1, respectively.
Hernández won re-election to the Commission’s District 4 seat with 76% of the vote over Elizabeth Burns, while Good repelled two opponents — Jim Henry and Dennis Hinds — with 50.5% to hold onto the District 1 seat.
Hinds took 43.5% of the vote. Henry received the remainder.
There are no runoffs in Pembroke Pines, Broward County’s second-largest city by population. The candidate with the greatest number of votes in a given race wins outright, regardless of whether they secure a majority.
District 1 covers an area of Pembroke Pines east of Flamingo Road and south of Hollywood Boulevard, while District 4 spans a city area west of Flamingo Road and south of Pines Boulevard.
Both winners Tuesday secured four-year terms.
Hernández, a public relations and government affairs pro, first joined the City Commission by appointment in May 2024 and won the right to serve the remaining two years of the District 4 seat term that November.
“It feels wonderful to not only have the support of our residents, but also to do it twice in such a short time period,” he told Florida Politics. “It’s humbling and also encouraging, because it shows that we’re doing the right thing as a City Commission, and me individually as a Commissioner as well.”
Hernandez vowed, if re-elected, to oppose higher electric utility rates, fight the construction of a trash incinerator within the city’s bounds, reduce traffic congestion and improve the city’s fiscal responsibility, parks and public safety.
Through Feb. 28, he raised about $74,600 and spent $49,500. His donations came from a variety of industries, including construction, engineering, insurance, waste services, tow-trucking, government relations and advertising.
Notable contributions included $1,000 from former U.S. Rep. Donna Shalala, $1,000 from charter school executive Maggie Zulueta and $100 from dentist Mike Friend, who is running to succeed state Rep. Mike Gottlieb in House District 102.
(L-R) Mike Hernández and Elizabeth Burns. Images via the candidates.
Burns, an event planner who unsuccessfully ran for Mayor as a first-time candidate in 2024, is a member and past Chair of the city’s Diversity and Heritage Advisory Board.
She shared several of Hernandez’s platform priorities, including the anti-incinerator, traffic and public safety issues.
Burns ran on promises to back the development of more affordable housing, support military families, champion small businesses, advocate for more senior and special needs services, enhance roadways for cyclists, and promote culture and diversity in the city.
She raised and spent about $9,500, mostly through personal checks and self-contributions. One $250 check came from former state Rep. James Bush III of Miami, who lost his seat in 2022 after being the only Democrat in the Legislature to vote for GOP-backed abortion restrictions and Florida’s “Parental Rights in Education” law.
Good, a U.S. Navy veteran and municipal utility services administrator, ran this year for a third straight term in the seat he won in 2018 after serving as an elected South Broward Drainage District Commissioner.
His job history includes work as Public Works Director for Cooper City and Miramar, and Assistant City Manager for Deerfield Beach. As an elected official, he has focused on delivering cost-effective municipal services, improving transportation safety and mobility, and adding to the local affordable housing index.
(L-R) Thomas Good, Jim Henry and Dennis Hinds. Images via Pembroke Pines, Pembroke Pines Police Department and Dennis Hinds.
Good raised close to $60,000 through the end of last month, spending $40,200. Donors included a blend of South Florida residents, out-of-town contributors, and various business and political interests. Among them: several Doral-based hospitality companies, a firefighters union, a Tallahassee-based consulting company and state Sen. Rosalind Osgood of Tamarac.
He also loaned his campaign $6,000.
Henry — a first-time candidate who retired from the Pembroke Police Department at the rank of sergeant in November 2023 and previously served in the U.S. Coast Guard — ran an overwhelmingly self-funded campaign.
He said his three priorities, if elected, would be to improve the “horrible” but fixable traffic concerns throughout the district, address disorder at North Perry Airport and enhance local schools with career and mentorship programs.
Hinds, a banking, finance, real estate and insurance professional, brought ample volunteer experience to the race, including service on the city’s Planning and Zoning, Diversity and Inclusion, and Stroke Awareness Boards.
He has also worked with the Miami Veterans Hospital, homeless shelters and food pantries, according to his campaign website, which includes a list of professional services he offers.
If elected, he said he would focus on growing the city’s economy and job offerings, improving public safety and expanding family, youth and senior services. He also promised to back law enforcement, keep taxes fair and property values strong.
By the end of the last reporting period, Hinds had raised $25,350 through his campaign account.