(CNN) \u2014 Eileen Higgins will be the next mayor of the city of Miami, breaking a nearly 30-year Republican streak in holding the nonpartisan seat and giving Democrats another example of strong performance in elections during the first year of President Donald Trump\u2019s second term.<\/p>\n
Higgins, a former county commissioner, will defeat city manager Emilio Gonzalez, who was endorsed by Trump. She won Tuesday\u2019s runoff after leading the first round of voting on November 4 with 35% of the vote to Gonzalez\u2019s 19%.<\/p>\n
Democrats are already riding a wave of momentum after a dominant performance in November\u2019s off-year elections and over-performing their 2024 results in Tennessee\u2019s 7th Congressional District, shrinking a 22-point 2024 margin to single digits in a special election last week.<\/p>\n
While Miami\u2019s mayor holds little formal power, the person in the role serves as a high-profile ambassador for the city, which has a large Latino population and has been at the epicenter of debates over immigration detention and efforts led by Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis<\/a> to arrest and deport undocumented immigrants.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are facing rhetoric from elected officials that is so dehumanizing and cruel, especially against immigrant populations,\u201d Higgins told The Associated Press<\/a> after her victory speech Tuesday night. \u201cThe residents of Miami were ready to be done with that.\u201d<\/p>\n Nikki Fried, chair of the Florida Democratic Party, congratulated Higgins in a statement Tuesday, writing, \u201cI am thrilled for Eileen and cannot think of a better person to shatter Miami\u2019s glass ceiling by becoming the first woman to lead the city in its 129-year history.\u201d<\/p>\n Affordability was a key issue throughout the campaign, especially relevant in one of the most expensive cities in the country. Capitalizing on the Democrats\u2019 national focus on the topic as of late, Higgins supported building more affordable housing. Gonzalez backed a DeSantis-supported plan that would eliminate property taxes for primary residences.<\/p>\n \u201cMy opponent is keen on building, building, building,\u201d Gonzalez said in an interview with CNN. \u201cShe wants to put a skyscraper in every corner \u2026 then calling it affordable housing, which is a misnomer, because very rarely is it truly affordable.\u201d<\/p>\n Immigration came up frequently in debates. Miami is home to the Krome immigrant detention center<\/a>, which has gained notoriety for overcrowding and subpar conditions.<\/p>\n Gonzalez said in a debate last month he supports federal law enforcement rounding up \u201cpeople who commit crimes.\u201d Higgins, in the same debate, denounced US Immigration and Customs Enforcement\u2019s actions in Miami as \u201cinhumane and cruel\u201d and criticized the detention center DeSantis opened<\/a> and nicknamed \u201cAlligator Alcatraz.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis is the first year ever where residents have told me they\u2019re afraid, right?\u201d Higgins said in an earlier interview with CNN. \u201cI can\u2019t go an hour when I am at community events without meeting someone whose brother, sister, aunt, uncle, was either taken to Alligator Alcatraz or who knows where? They don\u2019t even know where they are.\u201d<\/p>\n