Government of Miami-Dade County

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The Stephen P. Clark Government Center, the headquarters of the Miami-Dade government Government Center building from the Miami Main Library.JPG
The Stephen P. Clark Government Center, the headquarters of the Miami-Dade government

The government of Miami-Dade County is defined and authorized under the Constitution of Florida, Florida law, and the Home Rule Charter of Miami-Dade County. [1]

Contents

Since its formation in 1957, the county has had a two-tier system of government. Under this system, Miami-Dade comprises a large unincorporated area and 34 incorporated areas or municipalities. Each municipality has its own government and provides such city-type services as police and zoning protection.

In 2018, a state constitutional amendment was passed that made the positions of county tax collector, property appraiser, supervisor of elections, and sheriff independent elected offices. [2] [3]

Overview

Seal of the Miami-Dade County government. Seal of Miami Dade County, Florida.svg
Seal of the Miami-Dade County government.

Of the county's 2,751,796 total residents (as of 2017), [4] approximately 44% live in unincorporated areas, most of which are heavily urbanized. These residents are part of the Unincorporated Municipal Services Area (UMSA). For these residents, the county fills the role of both lower- and upper-tier government, the County Commission acting as their lower-tier municipal representative body. Residents within UMSA pay an UMSA tax, equivalent to a city tax, which is used to provide county residents with equivalent city services (police, fire, zoning, water and sewer, etc.). Residents of incorporated areas do not pay UMSA tax.

Organization

An executive mayor and the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners (BCC) govern the county. The county's main administrative offices are located in the Stephen P. Clark Center (SPCC) at 111 NW 1st Street in downtown Miami.

Board of County Commissioners

The Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners is the governing body of unincorporated Miami-Dade County and has broad regional powers to establish policies for Miami-Dade County services. The government provides major metropolitan services countywide and city-type services for residents of unincorporated areas. [5]

One county commissioner is elected from each of Miami-Dade County's 13 districts to serve a four-year term. Residents choose only from among candidates running in the district in which they live. Commissioners are chosen in non-partisan, single-district elections and can serve two four-year staggered terms, with elections scheduled every two years. The commissioners elect a chairperson, and the chairperson appoints the members, chairperson and vice chairperson of all standing committees. [5]

In November 2012, the Miami-Dade County Term Limit Amendment was approved, modifying the county charter to establish term limits of two consecutive four-year terms. [6]

Composition of the Board of Commissioners .mw-parser-output .legend{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .legend-color{display:inline-block;min-width:1.25em;height:1.25em;line-height:1.25;margin:1px 0;text-align:center;border:1px solid black;background-color:transparent;color:black}.mw-parser-output .legend-text{} Democratic (7) Republican (6) Miami-Dade County Commission 2018-2020.svg
Composition of the Board of Commissioners
  Democratic (7)
  Republican (6)

After the 2024 election, there are seven Democrats and six Republicans, though it is officially nonpartisan.

DistrictCommissionerFirst electedPartyNotes
Chair Anthony Rodriguez 2024 (as chair)Republican [7]
Vice chair Kionne McGhee 2024 (as vice chair)Democratic [8]
1st Oliver Gilbert 2020Democratic [8]
2ndMarleine Bastien2022Democratic [8]
3rdKeon Hardemon2020Democratic [8]
4thMicky Steinberg2022Democratic [8]
5thEileen Higgins2018Democratic [8]
6th Kevin Marino Cabrera 2022Republican
7thRaquel Regalado2020Republican [7]
8thDanielle Cohen Higgins2022Democratic [8] 2020 *appointed*
9th Kionne McGhee 2020Democratic [8]
10th Anthony Rodriguez 2022Republican [7]
11thRoberto Gonzalez2024Republican [7] 2022 *appointed*
12th Juan Carlos Bermudez 2022Republican [7]
13th René García 2020Republican [7]

Elected officers

In addition to the county commission, there are several elected "constitutional officers" that form the Government of Miami-Dade County that are required by the Florida Constitution and Florida law and authorized under the charter.

Mayor

The mayor is an independently elected county executive. The incumbent mayor of Miami-Dade County is Democrat Daniella Levine Cava (2020–present).

Sheriff

Florida sheriffs are vested with wide-ranging constitutional powers as both county officers and a part of the state judicial branch. [9] The incumbent sheriff of Miami-Dade County is Republican Rosie Cordero-Stutz (2025–present).

State attorney

The state attorney is a state and county official, serving as both the chief prosecutor of the state circuit court and county court. The incumbent state attorney for Miami-Dade County is Democrat Katherine Fernandez Rundle (1993–present).

Clerk of the circuit court

The clerk of court is a state and county official, serving as both the clerk of the state circuit court and county court. The clerk also functions as the ex-officio county comptroller, county auditor, county recorder, and clerk to the board of county commissioners. The incumbent Miami-Dade County clerk of court is Republican Juan Fernandez-Barquin (2023–present).

Public defender

The public defender is a state and county official, representing county residents in both the state circuit court and county court. The incumbent public defender of Miami-Dade County is Democrat Carlos J. Martinez (2009–present). [10]

Property appraiser

The incumbent property appraiser of Miami-Dade County is Republican Tomás Regalado (2025–present).

Supervisor of elections

The incumbent Miami-Dade County supervisor of elections is Republican Alina Garcia (2025–present).

Tax collector

The tax collector is charged with collecting county and state taxes in addition to its role as head of the county DMV. The incumbent tax collector of Miami-Dade County is Republican Dariel Fernandez (2025–present).

Departments

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Article VIII, Section 11". Constitution of Florida. leg.state.fl.us. 1885. Retrieved December 23, 2024.
  2. ↑ "Report Regarding Transition to Constitutional Offices" (PDF). miamidade.gov. Retrieved February 7, 2025.
  3. ↑ Rynor, Morgan (January 13, 2025). "Alina Garcia sworn in as Miami-Dade's new elections supervisor". CBS News . Retrieved February 7, 2025.
  4. ↑ "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Miami-Dade County, Florida; Florida". Census.gov. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
  5. 1 2 "About Board of County Commissioners". www.miamidade.gov. Retrieved July 2, 2024.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  6. ↑ "Governance - Miami-Dade County". Miamidade.gov. July 11, 2018. Archived from the original on June 24, 2017. Retrieved January 3, 2019.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Meet Our GOP Elected Officials". miamidadegop.org. Republican Party of Miami-Dade County, Florida. Retrieved April 13, 2025.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Elected Democrats". coralgablesdems.org. Coral Gables Democratic Club. Retrieved April 13, 2025.
  9. ↑ "Chapter 30, Florida Statues". leg.stste.fl.us. State of Florida. Retrieved February 7, 2025.
  10. ↑ "Hon. Carlos J. Martinez, Miami-Dade Public Defender" (PDF). UM Law Symposium. January 2020.
  11. ↑ "About Parks - Miami-Dade County". Miamidade.gov. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
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