The night of Nov. 5, 2024 was certainly one to remember. Americans watched as a majority of votes for the presidency, Congress, state amendments and local elections were counted until early Wednesday morning.
While analysts like NBC’s Steve Kornacki and CNN’s John King dissected the Magic Wall and what it would mean for the future of the country, Caplin News hosted an election night live blog with coverage of the races and voter reactions all over South Florida.
Even though many votes still have to be counted, national, state and local races have already closed with results that experts from across the nation say proves that Miami Dade — along with most of Florida — is now truly red.
Presidential Race
As of 5:38 a.m. Wednesday, after his significant win in the battleground state of Wisconsin, Donald Trump is the 47th President of the United States.
The president-elect declared victory in a speech from Palm Beach at 2:30 a.m., saying he had masterminded “the greatest political movement of all time.”
Votes for Trump were mainly propelled by economic insecurity and fear stoked by the former president. Enrique Salermo, 59, is one of many Trump supporters who gathered at the Versailles on Eighth Street for a Republican watch party. Salermo’s vote for Trump was fueled by his belief that Kamala Harris, who advocates for abortion, should not be in office.
“I care 100% about [the presidential candidates’] values, and if you are okay with killing kids, you could be capable of anything,” said Salermo. “The first thing I look at is your stance on abortion, and Kamala’s position is extreme.”
Meanwhile, Harris underperformed across the country, falling behind in several swing states that President Joe Biden had won in 2020. She is expected to address her supporters later today.
Senate Race
Earlier during Election Night, Republican Sen. Rick Scott was re-elected for a second term after fending off a spirited challenge from former U.S. Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell.
Hundreds of Scott’s supporters joined him at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort in Bonita Springs, Fla. to celebrate his win.
“This is a team event. Together, we get to celebrate a great victory tonight. There’s a lot of people to thank,” said Scott. “There’s a lot of people who knocked on doors, made phone calls, did texts. We had a lot of people just busting their butts”
Meanwhile at her watch party in Brickell, Mucarsel-Powell lauded her team for their canvassing efforts and lamented the fact that she, a woman and a mom, would not be able to fight for reproductive rights and Social Security in Washington, D.C. Nonetheless, she took her loss in stride.
“If you think that this Latina right here is giving up on Florida,” she said, “then I don’t think you’ve been paying attention.”
Florida’s Amendments
While state Amendments 3 and 4 received overwhelming support from Floridians, the referenda did not achieve at least 60% of the vote, therefore failing to pass.
Amendment 3 aimed to legalize marijuana for adults 21 and older, while Amendment 4 strived to eliminate the state’s six-week abortion ban.
Gov. Ron DeSantis posted on Twitter after the results, noting the defeat of the pot and abortion referenda.
Other amendments that failed include Amendment 1, which would have created partisan elections for school boards, and Amendment 6, which would have repealed public financing for political campaigns.
Only two Florida amendments on the ballot passed: Amendment 2, which creates a constitutional right to hunt and fish, and Amendment 5, which adjusts home property tax for inflation.
Miami-Dade County Sheriff
Republican candidate Rosanna “Rosie” Cordero-Stutz won the race for Miami-Dade sheriff, beating out Democrat James Reyes.
Cordero-Stutz, who was endorsed by Trump on social media earlier this year, led with 56% of the vote. Reyes only won 44%, even with the support of Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine-Cava.
“I will work each and every day to make certain that each and every corner of Miami-Dade feels safe,” she told supporters Tuesday night.
Meanwhile, Reyes conceded defeat in a statement, where he thanked supporters and others who worked on his campaign.
“My life’s work has been about public service and putting the community first, which is why I decided to run for sheriff,” the statement said. “Though tonight’s results are not what we worked so hard for or what we hoped, I am so grateful to my family, our dedicated campaign team, and our incredible volunteers who have done so much to fight for our shared vision of public safety and public trust.”
Other elections in the local counties had definitive results before the end of Tuesday night.
In the District 7 county commissioner race, Republican incumbent Raquel Regalado beat Democrat Cindy Lerner with nearly 57% of the vote.
Voters in the City of Miami passed Referenda 2 and 3, allowing two separate teams to redevelop the north and south sides of Watson Island, according to the Miami Herald.
In a field with three other candidates, Hollywood Mayor Josh Levy was re-elected to a third term. Levy won by nearly 53% of the vote, while the runner-up, Catherine Uden, followed with 32% of the vote.
For more results on the Miami-Dade local elections, click here. For results on Broward’s election, click here.
Story by Duvasana Bisoondial, video by Anthony Cruz
