Miami residents approve Strong Arm Mayor

by Actual News Geezer | January 24, 2007 at 09:09 am

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This was a referendum for Miami-Dade voters to approve a measure that would essentiall make the mayor the CEO of the entire region. It passed - despite opposition efforts to turn this into a wedge issue between African Americans and all the others.

Today Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Alvarez woke up with the power to hire and fire the county manager and 66 department directors. Fifty-six percent of the 150,399 registered voters who cast ballots punched yes on the strong mayor question.

For Alvarez, it wasn’t easy. During the past two years, he and Citizens for Reform, waged a fierce battle with the county commission in the courts, the commission chambers, and ultimately the streets of Miami-Dade.