Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner and city commissioner Laura Dominguez have secured second terms following the recent municipal elections. Meiner received 51 percent of the vote, surpassing his opponent, city commissioner Kristen Rosen Gonzalez, by approximately 350 votes. Dominguez defeated her challenger, developer Fred Karlton, with more than 60 percent of the vote.
Alex Fernandez, another city commissioner up for reelection, won decisively with 84 percent of the vote against Luidgi Mary.
The contest for the commission seat vacated by Rosen Gonzalez will proceed to a runoff next month between Monica Matteo-Salinas and attorney Monique Pardo Pope. Matteo-Salinas garnered 23 percent of the vote while Pardo Pope received 20 percent. The margin between Pardo Pope and hotel investor Brian Ehrlich was less than one percentage point; if it drops below half a percentage point, an automatic recount will be triggered.
Meiner’s campaign attracted significant financial backing from real estate and hospitality industry figures in Miami Beach. Lennar co-CEO Stuart Miller contributed $50,000 to Meiner’s political action committee (PAC), Miami Beach First. Additional donations included $25,000 from investor Michael Simkins; $20,000 from David Grutman of Groot Hospitality; $18,000 from Alex Kleyner; and $10,000 each from developer Scott Robins and New York-based Naftali Group led by Miki Naftali.
In the race between Dominguez and Karlton, both candidates received support from real estate and hospitality sectors. Karlton largely self-funded his campaign with a $150,000 contribution. Dominguez’s campaign drew maximum individual donations of $1,000 each from several notable developers including Michael Shvo; Jose and Diego Ardid of Key International; James LeFrak of LeFrak Organization along with a related affiliate; and two executives at OKO Group.
During their campaigns, Karlton and commissioner David Suarez criticized Dominguez for allegedly supporting legislation that benefited developers who had previously supported her PAC during her initial run in a 2022 special election. However, this year Dominguez did not raise funds through her PAC.
In the commission race heading to a runoff, Brian Ehrlich was notably backed by real estate interests. His campaign accepted maximum individual contributions from Arnaud Karsenti of 13th Floor Investments as well as his wife Rebecca Karsenti; the Catalina Hotel at 1732 Collins Avenue; and two entities managed by Jimmy Resnick. Ehrlich’s PAC also received major donations including $25,000 from hotelier Shawn Vardi and $5,000 from Christopher Cuomo.
