Matti Herrera Bower | |
---|---|
36th Mayor of Miami Beach | |
In office November 21, 2007 [1] –November 25, 2013 | |
Preceded by | David Dermer |
Succeeded by | Philip Levine |
Personal details | |
Born | Cuba | April 4,1939
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse | Richard Bower |
Children | 4 daughters |
Residence | Miami Beach,Florida |
Profession | Politician,retired dental assistant [2] |
Matilde "Matti" Herrera Bower is a Cuban-American politician and retired dental assistant. Bower has been elected to three two-year terms as the Mayor of Miami Beach,Florida,beginning in 2007. [2] [3] Most recently,because of a loophole in the term limits rule,Bower was able to run for an open commission seat but lost by a considerably large margin in the run-off race against retired banker Joy Malakoff. Bower won re-election to her third and final term as mayor on November 1,2011. [4] She is the first woman,as well as the first Hispanic,to serve as mayor of Miami Beach. [5] She is a Democrat, [6] though the Miami Beach elections are nonpartisan.
Bower was born in Cuba and immigrated to the United States. She attended Miami Technical High School and became a dental assistant. [2] Bower also spent decades as a local activist and preservationist,including advocating for the successful preservation of the Miami Beach Architectural District. [2]
Bower served as a Miami Beach city commissioner from 1999 to 2007 before being elected mayor of the South Florida city in 2007. [2] [4] She won re-election to a second term in 2009. The city of Miami Beach received a bond rating upgrade in 2010 and saw a balanced budget that same year under Bower. [3] However,pension costs have risen to more than $50 million in 2011,up from just $3.5 million in 2000. [3] She has also dealt with the controversy surrounding Urban Beach Week. [3]
In 2011,Bower announced her re-election campaign for a third,and final,term as Mayor of Miami Beach. [2] (Mayors are term-limited to three,two-year terms in office). Bower,who was 72 years old in November 2011,faced three opponents in the election:comedian Steve Berke,entrepreneur Dave Crystal,and public relations practitioner Laura Rivero Levey. [2]
Bower was easily re-elected to a third term on November 1,2011. [4] She won 59.4% of the popular vote,or 4,103 votes. [5] Her closest opponent,comedian and Yale University graduate Steve Berke,garnered 23.38%,or 1,614.
Matti Herrera Bower was sworn into her third mayoral term on November 2,2011. Bower ran for the Miami Beach Commission Group 3 seat in 2013,but lost to Joy Malakoff,garnering 2,641 votes (40.27%) to Malakoff's 4,214 votes (59.73%). [7]
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