2020 Fort Lauderdale mayoral election

2020 Fort Lauderdale mayoral election

←  2018 November 3, 2020 2024  →

Candidate Dean Trantalis Kenneth Cooper Popular vote 49,388 36,568 Percentage 57.46% 42.54%

Precinct results Trantalis:     50–60%     60–70%     70–80% Cooper:     50–60% No votes:

Mayor before election Dean Trantalis Nonpartisan Elected Mayor Dean Trantalis Nonpartisan

The 2020 Fort Lauderdale mayoral election took place on November 3, 2020. A 2019 amendment to the city charter eliminated municipal primary elections, lengthened the Mayor's term of office from three to four years, and aligned mayoral elections with presidential elections, beginning with the 2020 election. ^[1]

Incumbent Mayor Dean Trantalis ran for re-election to a second term, and was challenged by attorney Kenneth Cooper. Trantalis was endorsed by the Sun Sentinel , which praised him as "far more capable and qualified than Cooper." ^[2]

Trantalis defeated Cooper by a wide margin, winning re-election with 57 percent of the vote. However, after the election, Cooper contested his loss, filing a lawsuit that argued that the mail-in ballots cast in the election should not be counted. ^[3] In March 2021, Cooper dropped the lawsuit. ^[4]

General election

Candidates

• Dean Trantalis, incumbent Mayor ^[5]
• Kenneth Cooper, attorney ^[5]

Results

2020 Fort Lauderdale mayoral election results ^[6]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Dean Trantalis (inc.)	49,388	57.46%
	Nonpartisan	Kenneth Cooper	36,568	42.54%
Total votes			85,956	100.00%

References

1. General election; regular municipal election (art. VII, § 7.07). 2020. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
2. "Reelect Dean Trantalis". Sun Sentinel . Fort Lauderdale, Florida. September 6, 2020. p. 36A. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
3. Bryan, Susannah (December 2, 2020). "Candidate sues to overturn the mayor's election". Sun Sentinel . Fort Lauderdale, Florida. p. 1B. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
4. Bryan, Susannah (March 1, 2021). "Losing candidate drops lawsuit challenging Fort Lauderdale mayor's race". Sun Sentinel . Fort Lauderdale, Florida. p. 1B. Retrieved July 17, 2025.
5. Bagg, Marissa (October 23, 2020). "Two Attorneys Square Off in Race for Mayor of Fort Lauderdale". NBC Miami . Miami, Florida . Retrieved July 17, 2025.
6. "General Election". Broward County Supervisor of Elections. May 18, 2023. Retrieved July 16, 2025.