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Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Carollo calls $500K he spent to elect Rosado ‘worst political mistake' of his life
As he left the most recent Miami City Commission meeting this month, a seething Joe Carollo had harsh words for his new colleague, Ralph Rosado: 'You will never be a future mayor.' In less than a month, the longtime city commissioner went from bankrolling Rosado's campaign and celebrating his subsequent victory, to deeply regretting the sleepless nights and mountains of cash he spent to ensure Rosado would become the city's next District 4 commissioner. During the breakneck six-week special election, Carollo's political committee, Miami First, spent over a half-million dollars on Rosado's election. But according to Carollo, his help went far beyond mere financial assistance. In an interview with the Miami Herald, Carollo laid out his winning strategy that he said catapulted Rosado from trailing 25 percentage points behind opponent Jose Regalado to defeating Regalado with 55% of the vote last month. At the end, just 548 votes separated the two. That strategy entailed staying up until 2 or 3 a.m. creating campaign mailers, spending three days filming Rosado's 30-second campaign ad, and ultimately dragging the Regalado name through the mud to decimate any goodwill associated with one of South Florida's most prominent political families. A flurry of anti-Regalado attack mailers accused the former assistant building director of abusing animals and alleged that the Regalado family has ties to international drug traffickers. Rosado, who declined to be interviewed for this story, said in a written statement to the Herald that he ran a 'positive, issue-focused campaign.' Rosado said Carollo's 'insights were appreciated' but that 'ultimately, the decisions about our message, outreach and the contrasts we drew were made by our campaign, and we're proud of the way we connected with voters and executed our plan with integrity and focus.' Rosado's opponent sees it differently. 'It was character assassination,' Regalado told the Herald in a recent interview. 'It wasn't a positive campaign. It was one of the most negative campaigns I've ever seen in my life.' Carollo says he was heavily involved in Rosado's campaign and that Rosado was '100%' aware of what was taking place behind the scenes — including the anti-Regalado smear campaign. But now, weeks after Rosado's swearing-in, Carollo regrets those efforts. 'It's the worst political mistake that I've made in my life,' said Carollo, who was first elected to the Miami City Commission in 1979. His change of heart follows several City Commission votes by Rosado that Carollo took issue with. That includes Rosado's tiebreaker vote in favor of postponing the upcoming November election to 2026 — a measure backed by the mayor — as well as Rosado's vote to shutter the Bayfront Park Management Trust in January of next year. Carollo previously chaired the Trust, but he was ousted from the agency earlier this year, and it was turned over to his rival, Commissioner Miguel Angel Gabela. Rosado now joins Gabela on Carollo's ever-evolving list of political adversaries — a roster that currently includes Commissioner Damian Pardo and Mayor Francis Suarez, whose political committee spent over $1 million on Rosado's election. 'I didn't expect anything with Ralph Rosado, with the exception of him coming here to be an honest commissioner,' Carollo said. 'I didn't expect him to come here to be a lap dog — another lap dog — for Mayor Suarez.' Carollo explains his winning strategy While Suarez outspent Carollo 2-to-1 in support of Rosado's campaign, Carollo maintains that his efforts, paired with help from his wife, Marjorie, are the real reason Rosado was victorious. 'It's not just the money. … It's the strategy,' Carollo said. He added: 'Bottom line is that if Mr. Rosado had not had an angel like Joe or Marjorie Carollo, he never, never, never would have gotten elected.' In a sit-down interview with the Herald, Carollo explained a two-prong strategy that he said paved the way for Rosado to defeat Regalado by less than 600 votes. Step one was to run a negative campaign not just against Regalado, but his whole family. Carollo said such a strategy was required in this particular situation, where there was less than two months to campaign and where Rosado was facing off against a member of one of South Florida's most powerful political families. Jose Regalado's father, Tomás Regalado, is a former Miami mayor and city commissioner and currently serves as the county's property appraiser; Jose Regalado's sister is Miami-Dade County Commissioner Raquel Regalado. 'I could've ran just a straight campaign of being positive, and you could not have beaten these people in what really amounted to four weeks of advertising,' Carollo said. 'You could've done it in six months, maybe. But not in four weeks. Not [against] the Regalado name.' Of the $547,000 that Carollo's political committee, Miami First, spent on Rosado's election, the vast majority — over $420,000 — went to radio and television ads, according to campaign finance reports. Another $86,000 was spent on mailers and printing alone. 'You had to expose the negative of the Regalados, and you had to do it in a way that you give people the truth with the proof,' Carollo said. 'And that's how we did it: the truth with the proof.' (Regalado, meanwhile, has called Carollo's claims completely baseless.) District 4 residents were getting inundated with a sea of negative mailers, television and radio ads. But it couldn't only be negative, Carollo explained, because that would leave voters so disillusioned that they might skip the ballot box altogether. So the second step of his strategy involved offering voters a positive alternative to Regalado. Carollo went as far as offering Rosado almost a complete copy-paste of a mailer Carollo sent out in his own 2021 run for city commissioner, in which Carollo is holding up his grandson. In a visually similar mailer, Rosado is seen holding up his nephew. Carollo said he designed the mailer, although it says it was paid for by Rosado's campaign. Carollo also said that he and wife, Marjorie, spent a total of three full days filming Rosado's 30-second campaign video. That included one day of meeting and interacting with Rosado's family members off-camera, followed by two days of filming. Carollo told the Herald that he and Marjorie directed the video and were heavily involved in its production. That's different from what Rosado has stated publicly. He initially told political blogger Elaine de Valle that Carollo was not with him at Douglas Park filming a campaign video. When de Valle told Rosado that she had a video clip showing Carollo and his wife seemingly directing a shot, Rosado told her he would get back to her but never did, de Valle reported. When the Herald later asked Rosado to clarify the incident, he described something serendipitous, saying Carollo happened to be in the Douglas Park area while Rosado was filming, so he decided to swing by and offer some insights. But that's not true, Carollo said. 'Everything that was said there was written by my wife and myself. Everything,' he said of Rosado's 30-second ad. Mayor's involvement Carollo also described a coordinated effort between himself and Suarez to get Rosado elected. While Carollo would handle the negative campaigning, Suarez would focus on the positive side, Carollo said. Suarez's political committee, Miami for Everyone, spent $1.1 million on Rosado's election, according to campaign finance reports. That includes $900,000 that went directly to Rosado's PAC. Suarez declined to be interviewed for this story. In response to written questions, he denied Carollo's claim that there was a coordinated effort of any sort. 'I'm proud to have supported Ralph Rosado for Commissioner,' the mayor said. 'He ran on a clear, public platform and made his positions known throughout his campaign — including to your publication.' Suarez said Carollo's claims 'come at a very particular time, in light of the recent Commission votes that could impact his and his family's ability to continue making a living out of the city taxpayer's pockets.' 'For the past two and a half years, our office has had a positive working relationship with Commissioner Carollo's office,' Suarez continued. 'However, now Commissioner Carollo is throwing out baseless claims hoping something sticks — but you have to ask: why now, and not a year ago or two years ago? These are the same political tactics we've seen for years, and they're as transparent today as they have ever been.' Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Political dynasties battle behind the scenes in Miami special election
In the business world, it's not what you know, but who you know. The same can often be said for Miami politics. But at a time of heightened criticism of so-called political dynasties, a candidate's proximity to power can be a double-edged sword. That's the dynamic that's been playing out in the upcoming city of Miami election to replace District 4 Commissioner Manolo Reyes after his death last month. On one side is Jose Regalado, 40, the brother of County Commissioner Raquel Regalado and son of former Miami mayor and current Miami-Dade Property Appraiser Tomás Regalado. He has the backing of the Reyes family. On the other side is Ralph Rosado, 52, an urban planner whose candidacy is backed by Commissioner Joe Carollo's political committee, which has been funding anti-Regalado ads. Rosado is also friends with former City Attorney Victoria Méndez, a Carollo ally who was fired by the City Commission last year. No matter who wins, the June 3 special election could tip the scales of power on the five-member City Commission, where important decisions are often made by a 3-2 vote. Within a matter of days of being sworn in, the new commissioner is expected to weigh in on major decisions about the future of the city, potentially casting the tiebreaker vote on a proposal to create stricter term limits for elected officials. They could also be a deciding vote on a proposal to skip the upcoming November election and extend the current elected officials' terms by one year in order to switch the city to even-year elections starting in 2026. The candidates' political alliances have been a focal point during the short special election cycle, where campaigning has moved at a breakneck speed, with just a little over a month from the candidate qualifying deadline to Election Day. Regalado described his opponent as 'a serial candidate who's backed, funded and directed by Joe Carollo, the person at the center of the dysfunction in City Hall.' 'His campaign is built on misinformation and fear, all to ensure Joe Carollo keeps his grip of power,' Regalado added. But to Rosado, the race is something closer to a David and Goliath battle. 'I'm running against a political machine,' Rosado said. The difference between himself and his opponent? 'Politics is not my family business.' Rosado has positioned himself as the non-establishment candidate, telling District 4 voters in a text message this month that: 'I'm not part of a political dynasty or backed by insiders. I'm a father of three, a longtime public servant, and your neighbor - running to bring fresh leadership to City Hall.' But the former North Bay Village manager has the backing of Carollo, a Miami politician considered an establishment unto himself. READ MORE: Miami's political godfather Joe Carollo, unfazed by $63M beating, can't wait for next fight Carollo's political committee, Miami First, has paid for a flurry of anti-Regalado mailers and ads on Telemundo and Univision. Carollo, who is chairman of the political committee, declined to say how much money Miami First has spent on the District 4 special election but said it hadn't yet reached six figures. Campaign finance reports, which are released on a quarterly basis, aren't due until after the election. Earlier this month, the blog Political Cortadito posted a video of Carollo seemingly directing a campaign video for Rosado at a park. Rosado told the Miami Herald he was filming a commercial 'paid for by me' and that Carollo happened to be in the area and offered to stop by. 'He had reached out and had some suggestions,' Rosado said. 'We listened to his suggestions. Some we took, some we didn't take.' Rosado added that he would entertain recommendations from any member on the City Commission, where he hopes to be a 'swing vote.' 'I'm looking to be a moderate voice on the commission,' Rosado said. 'I'm not high drama. I think there's plenty of that. I just want to get things done for the community. So I'm happy to interact positively with any of the elected leaders.' While Carollo is supporting Rosado's candidacy, he is not working for Rosado's campaign, which is being run by Jesse Manzano-Plaza, a campaign consultant whose clients include Miami Mayor Francis Suarez. Carollo said his support for Rosado is not based on a personal relationship with Rosado, who previously ran for the District 4 seat in 2017, losing to Reyes. 'I don't know Rosado,' Carollo said. 'He's someone that I recently met. I think he's an honest man.' Carollo added that Rosado is 'superbly qualified for this job,' touting Rosado's master's in public policy and urban planning from Princeton University and a Ph.D. in city planning from the University of Pennsylvania. Asked if he considers Rosado to be an establishment-backed candidate, Carollo responded: 'Heck no.' 'Mr. Rosado is going to be a super independent commissioner,' Carollo said. Rosado is also close friends with former City Attorney Victoria Méndez through his wife, who went to high school with Méndez. Along with Méndez's husband, the two couples have traveled together internationally, and Rosado and his wife previously rented a home from Méndez and her husband around 2013. Rosado is the founding president of the nonprofit Abuelos Foundation, which helps distribute meals to seniors. He served alongside Méndez and her husband, Carlos Morales, on the board of the foundation for years, public records show. While Méndez and Morales are still board members, Rosado left the board in 2021, according to state business records, although he still volunteers with the organization. Rosado emphasized that Méndez, who was city attorney for about a decade, is no longer in City Hall. 'She's the former city attorney,' he said. 'So that's — I don't know that I could consider her a part of the establishment.' After being fired by the City Commission last year, Méndez was named partner at the law firm Shutts & Bowen. The city has retained Shutts & Bowen for various legal matters in recent years. The firm has invoiced the city for millions of dollars in legal fees relating to the Miami Freedom Park stadium project and a lawsuit filed by a pair of Little Havana businessmen against Carollo, according to public records. If he's elected, Rosado said he would not seek to bring Méndez back to the city in any capacity, as city attorney or otherwise. 'I can't imagine she would want to come back as city attorney,' he added. Rosado also said he would recuse himself from votes related to Méndez. Asked if he plans to recuse himself from votes on Shutts & Bowen, Rosado said he would seek a formal opinion from the City Attorney's Office and decide on a case-by-case basis. Méndez did not respond to an interview request or written questions from the Herald. Rosado underscored that he would be an independent voice on the City Commission. 'I'm going to vote for the things that I think are right,' he said, 'and sometimes they will be supported by certain people, and other times will be supported by other people.' Up until last month, Jose Regalado was working in the city as an assistant building director and interim building director. He also spent two years as a policy adviser in Reyes' office from 2017, when Reyes was first elected, to 2019. Previously, he worked as an underwater photographer. Despite growing up with a politician father, he has never sought elected office before. That changed on April 19 when Jose Regalado got a phone call from Chacha Reyes, the widow of Manolo Reyes. She had a request for Regalado: Will you carry on my husband's legacy and run for District 4 commissioner? With less than a week to go before the deadline to file for the race, Regalado didn't have much time to think about it. 'I am a civil servant,' said Regalado. 'And then a widow asked me to do this, and I couldn't say no.' The next day, Easter Sunday, Regalado met with Chacha Reyes at her home, and the day after, he resigned from his post in the city and announced his plans to run. Since then, Regalado has had the full backing of the Reyes family, including Chacha, who recorded a commercial supporting him that's aired on Spanish radio. The late commissioner's son, Manny Reyes, said his father did not support Rosado, whom Manny described as an 'opportunist.' Instead, he said his dad was 'very, very close' with Jose Regalado. '[Regalado] lived the district through his dad's eyes, knowing what his district was composed of,' Manny Reyes said. 'Much like myself, he was his dad's shadow.' Jose Regalado's family isn't just cheering him on from the sidelines. Raquel and Tomás Regalado are both door-knocking for him, and Raquel is acting as his campaign manager. 'I have run every Regalado campaign since 1995,' Raquel said. Her father was elected to the Miami City Commission in 1996. 'All Regalados work on campaigns,' she said, adding that she's not being paid for her work on her brother's campaign. Tomás Regalado's political committee, Proven Leadership for Miami, has been fundraising for Jose, who said it was more efficient to use the preexisting political committee rather than start from scratch in the shortened special election cycle. (While similarly named, that political committee is separate from the one linked to former City Commissioner Alex Díaz de la Portilla, called Proven Leadership for Miami-Dade County.) The political committee linked to Reyes, Transparency & Accountability for Miami, is also spending money in the race. Outside of work hours, the majority of Reyes' District 4 staff is campaigning for Jose Regalado, who has committed to retain them if he wins. Two District 4 employees have taken unpaid leaves of absence from the city to commit to campaigning full-time through the election. City staff are allowed to campaign as long as it happens outside of work hours and doesn't interfere with city work. Carollo in recent weeks has taken aim at the Regalado family, with his political committee funding a flurry of attack mailers and television ads. Carollo has argued that Jose Regalado is unqualified, pointing to his recent job in the city's building department, as well as his experience as an underwater photographer. 'Maybe he found the lost city of Atlantis and he did some building there that we don't know about,' Carollo told the Herald. The pair are likely to spar on the dais should Regalado be elected. 'Joe is an agent of chaos,' Jose Regalado said. 'Something that I have in common with both Manolo and my dad is that I'm not scared of him.' In the days immediately following Reyes' April 10 death, a third candidate was considered to be the heir apparent for the role: Rafael 'Ralph' Cabrera, president-elect of the Latin Builders Association, who also had the support of the Reyes family at the time. But Cabrera's candidacy was thwarted after an investigation by the Miami-Dade County Property Appraiser's Office — which is headed by Tomás Regalado — dredged up residency issues for the would-be candidate. Records obtained by the Herald show that on April 14, an unnamed individual contacted the Property Appraiser's Office, alleging Cabrera 'does not reside' at his homesteaded property, located in District 4, and to 'please investigate.' The homestead fraud investigation concluded that same week. On April 18 — the day after the City Commission called for a special election to replace Reyes — a letter from the Property Appraiser's Office to Cabrera stated that he was not entitled to the homestead exemption he had claimed for years on that property and that he owed nearly $40,000 in fines. Those findings seemingly disqualified him from running for Reyes' seat. Cabrera did not respond to a request for comment. Rosado has alleged that politics were at play, suggesting that Tomás Regalado was motivated to get Cabrera out of the race so that his son could run instead. 'He did this in record time,' Rosado said. He added that he didn't file the initial complaint, nor did he know who did. Tomás Regalado told the Herald he had no involvement in the investigation, nor was he aware of it while it was happening. He said his office receives hundreds of complaints per month and that it's 'the norm' for such investigations to conclude in a matter of days. The elder Regalado said that his office is required to look into every complaint, even if it's anonymous. 'To me, it was a surprise,' Tomás Regalado said. 'At the time, Jose was not even thinking of running for this position.' Manny Reyes confirmed that his family initially supported Cabrera. In fact, Cabrera attended the April 17 meeting where the City Commission decided to call for a special election. 'We were ready to support Ralph [Cabrera],' Manny Reyes said. But the residency issue created a roadblock. At that point, it was time to pivot. Enter Jose Regalado. 'It's a sprint,' Manny Reyes said of the brief special election cycle. 'Think fast, act fast.'
Miami Herald
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Miami Herald
Political dynasties battle behind the scenes in Miami special election
In the business world, it's not what you know, but who you know. The same can often be said for Miami politics. But at a time of heightened criticism of so-called political dynasties, a candidate's proximity to power can be a double-edged sword. That's the dynamic that's been playing out in the upcoming city of Miami election to replace District 4 Commissioner Manolo Reyes after his death last month. On one side is Jose Regalado, 40, the brother of County Commissioner Raquel Regalado and son of former Miami mayor and current Miami-Dade Property Appraiser Tomás Regalado. He has the backing of the Reyes family. On the other side is Ralph Rosado, 52, an urban planner whose candidacy is backed by Commissioner Joe Carollo's political committee, which has been funding anti-Regalado ads. Rosado is also friends with former City Attorney Victoria Méndez, a Carollo ally who was fired by the City Commission last year. No matter who wins, the June 3 special election could tip the scales of power on the five-member City Commission, where important decisions are often made by a 3-2 vote. Within a matter of days of being sworn in, the new commissioner is expected to weigh in on major decisions about the future of the city, potentially casting the tiebreaker vote on a proposal to create stricter term limits for elected officials. They could also be a deciding vote on a proposal to skip the upcoming November election and extend the current elected officials' terms by one year in order to switch the city to even-year elections starting in 2026. The candidates' political alliances have been a focal point during the short special election cycle, where campaigning has moved at a breakneck speed, with just a little over a month from the candidate qualifying deadline to Election Day. Regalado described his opponent as 'a serial candidate who's backed, funded and directed by Joe Carollo, the person at the center of the dysfunction in City Hall.' 'His campaign is built on misinformation and fear, all to ensure Joe Carollo keeps his grip of power,' Regalado added. But to Rosado, the race is something closer to a David and Goliath battle. 'I'm running against a political machine,' Rosado said. The difference between himself and his opponent? 'Politics is not my family business.' Rosado's ties to Carollo and former city attorney Rosado has positioned himself as the non-establishment candidate, telling District 4 voters in a text message this month that: 'I'm not part of a political dynasty or backed by insiders. I'm a father of three, a longtime public servant, and your neighbor - running to bring fresh leadership to City Hall.' But the former North Bay Village manager has the backing of Carollo, a Miami politician considered an establishment unto himself. READ MORE: Miami's political godfather Joe Carollo, unfazed by $63M beating, can't wait for next fight Carollo's political committee, Miami First, has paid for a flurry of anti-Regalado mailers and ads on Telemundo and Univision. Carollo, who is chairman of the political committee, declined to say how much money Miami First has spent on the District 4 special election but said it hadn't yet reached six figures. Campaign finance reports, which are released on a quarterly basis, aren't due until after the election. Earlier this month, the blog Political Cortadito posted a video of Carollo seemingly directing a campaign video for Rosado at a park. Rosado told the Miami Herald he was filming a commercial 'paid for by me' and that Carollo happened to be in the area and offered to stop by. 'He had reached out and had some suggestions,' Rosado said. 'We listened to his suggestions. Some we took, some we didn't take.' Rosado added that he would entertain recommendations from any member on the City Commission, where he hopes to be a 'swing vote.' 'I'm looking to be a moderate voice on the commission,' Rosado said. 'I'm not high drama. I think there's plenty of that. I just want to get things done for the community. So I'm happy to interact positively with any of the elected leaders.' While Carollo is supporting Rosado's candidacy, he is not working for Rosado's campaign, which is being run by Jesse Manzano-Plaza, a campaign consultant whose clients include Miami Mayor Francis Suarez. Carollo said his support for Rosado is not based on a personal relationship with Rosado, who previously ran for the District 4 seat in 2017, losing to Reyes. 'I don't know Rosado,' Carollo said. 'He's someone that I recently met. I think he's an honest man.' Carollo added that Rosado is 'superbly qualified for this job,' touting Rosado's master's in public policy and urban planning from Princeton University and a Ph.D. in city planning from the University of Pennsylvania. Asked if he considers Rosado to be an establishment-backed candidate, Carollo responded: 'Heck no.' 'Mr. Rosado is going to be a super independent commissioner,' Carollo said. Rosado is also close friends with former City Attorney Victoria Méndez through his wife, who went to high school with Méndez. Along with Méndez's husband, the two couples have traveled together internationally, and Rosado and his wife previously rented a home from Méndez and her husband around 2013. Rosado is the founding president of the nonprofit Abuelos Foundation, which helps distribute meals to seniors. He served alongside Méndez and her husband, Carlos Morales, on the board of the foundation for years, public records show. While Méndez and Morales are still board members, Rosado left the board in 2021, according to state business records, although he still volunteers with the organization. Rosado emphasized that Méndez, who was city attorney for about a decade, is no longer in City Hall. 'She's the former city attorney,' he said. 'So that's — I don't know that I could consider her a part of the establishment.' After being fired by the City Commission last year, Méndez was named partner at the law firm Shutts & Bowen. The city has retained Shutts & Bowen for various legal matters in recent years. The firm has invoiced the city for millions of dollars in legal fees relating to the Miami Freedom Park stadium project and a lawsuit filed by a pair of Little Havana businessmen against Carollo, according to public records. If he's elected, Rosado said he would not seek to bring Méndez back to the city in any capacity, as city attorney or otherwise. 'I can't imagine she would want to come back as city attorney,' he added. Rosado also said he would recuse himself from votes related to Méndez. Asked if he plans to recuse himself from votes on Shutts & Bowen, Rosado said he would seek a formal opinion from the City Attorney's Office and decide on a case-by-case basis. Méndez did not respond to an interview request or written questions from the Herald. Rosado underscored that he would be an independent voice on the City Commission. 'I'm going to vote for the things that I think are right,' he said, 'and sometimes they will be supported by certain people, and other times will be supported by other people.' Regalado courted by Reyes family Up until last month, Jose Regalado was working in the city as an assistant building director and interim building director. He also spent two years as a policy adviser in Reyes' office from 2017, when Reyes was first elected, to 2019. Previously, he worked as an underwater photographer. Despite growing up with a politician father, he has never sought elected office before. That changed on April 19 when Jose Regalado got a phone call from Chacha Reyes, the widow of Manolo Reyes. She had a request for Regalado: Will you carry on my husband's legacy and run for District 4 commissioner? With less than a week to go before the deadline to file for the race, Regalado didn't have much time to think about it. 'I am a civil servant,' said Regalado. 'And then a widow asked me to do this, and I couldn't say no.' The next day, Easter Sunday, Regalado met with Chacha Reyes at her home, and the day after, he resigned from his post in the city and announced his plans to run. Since then, Regalado has had the full backing of the Reyes family, including Chacha, who recorded a commercial supporting him that's aired on Spanish radio. The late commissioner's son, Manny Reyes, said his father did not support Rosado, whom Manny described as an 'opportunist.' Instead, he said his dad was 'very, very close' with Jose Regalado. '[Regalado] lived the district through his dad's eyes, knowing what his district was composed of,' Manny Reyes said. 'Much like myself, he was his dad's shadow.' Jose Regalado's family isn't just cheering him on from the sidelines. Raquel and Tomás Regalado are both door-knocking for him, and Raquel is acting as his campaign manager. 'I have run every Regalado campaign since 1995,' Raquel said. Her father was elected to the Miami City Commission in 1996. 'All Regalados work on campaigns,' she said, adding that she's not being paid for her work on her brother's campaign. Tomás Regalado's political committee, Proven Leadership for Miami, has been fundraising for Jose, who said it was more efficient to use the preexisting political committee rather than start from scratch in the shortened special election cycle. (While similarly named, that political committee is separate from the one linked to former City Commissioner Alex Díaz de la Portilla, called Proven Leadership for Miami-Dade County.) The political committee linked to Reyes, Transparency & Accountability for Miami, is also spending money in the race. Outside of work hours, the majority of Reyes' District 4 staff is campaigning for Jose Regalado, who has committed to retain them if he wins. Two District 4 employees have taken unpaid leaves of absence from the city to commit to campaigning full-time through the election. City staff are allowed to campaign as long as it happens outside of work hours and doesn't interfere with city work. Carollo in recent weeks has taken aim at the Regalado family, with his political committee funding a flurry of attack mailers and television ads. Carollo has argued that Jose Regalado is unqualified, pointing to his recent job in the city's building department, as well as his experience as an underwater photographer. 'Maybe he found the lost city of Atlantis and he did some building there that we don't know about,' Carollo told the Herald. The pair are likely to spar on the dais should Regalado be elected. 'Joe is an agent of chaos,' Jose Regalado said. 'Something that I have in common with both Manolo and my dad is that I'm not scared of him.' Third candidate dropped out after property appraiser investigation In the days immediately following Reyes' April 10 death, a third candidate was considered to be the heir apparent for the role: Rafael 'Ralph' Cabrera, president-elect of the Latin Builders Association, who also had the support of the Reyes family at the time. But Cabrera's candidacy was thwarted after an investigation by the Miami-Dade County Property Appraiser's Office — which is headed by Tomás Regalado — dredged up residency issues for the would-be candidate. Records obtained by the Herald show that on April 14, an unnamed individual contacted the Property Appraiser's Office, alleging Cabrera 'does not reside' at his homesteaded property, located in District 4, and to 'please investigate.' The homestead fraud investigation concluded that same week. On April 18 — the day after the City Commission called for a special election to replace Reyes — a letter from the Property Appraiser's Office to Cabrera stated that he was not entitled to the homestead exemption he had claimed for years on that property and that he owed nearly $40,000 in fines. Those findings seemingly disqualified him from running for Reyes' seat. Cabrera did not respond to a request for comment. Rosado has alleged that politics were at play, suggesting that Tomás Regalado was motivated to get Cabrera out of the race so that his son could run instead. 'He did this in record time,' Rosado said. He added that he didn't file the initial complaint, nor did he know who did. Tomás Regalado told the Herald he had no involvement in the investigation, nor was he aware of it while it was happening. He said his office receives hundreds of complaints per month and that it's 'the norm' for such investigations to conclude in a matter of days. The elder Regalado said that his office is required to look into every complaint, even if it's anonymous. 'To me, it was a surprise,' Tomás Regalado said. 'At the time, Jose was not even thinking of running for this position.' Manny Reyes confirmed that his family initially supported Cabrera. In fact, Cabrera attended the April 17 meeting where the City Commission decided to call for a special election. 'We were ready to support Ralph [Cabrera],' Manny Reyes said. But the residency issue created a roadblock. At that point, it was time to pivot. Enter Jose Regalado. 'It's a sprint,' Manny Reyes said of the brief special election cycle. 'Think fast, act fast.'
