Jesse Scheckner
Coral Gables City Commissioner Jorge Fors Jr. may have just launched his bid for the Miami-Dade County Commission seat representing District 6, but he already has an edge.
Fors, a lawyer in private life who won election in Coral Gables three years ago, announced his candidacy Thursday.
“I am humbled by the support of so many District 6 residents who have asked and encouraged me to run,” Fors said in a statement, adding that he is doing so with the blessing of his family “whose backing gives me the strength to further pursue my passion for public service.”
He’ll also enjoy a powerful boost from sitting District 6 Commissioner Rebeca Sosa, who gave Fors an emphatic endorsement.
“I am excited to learn of Commissioner Fors’ decision to run, and he has both my support and my vote,” Sosa said.
Fors, in turn, thanked Sosa for her “leadership and tireless advocacy” for the community.
“I greatly appreciate your total support and faith in my ability to address the issues concerning all the residents of District 6 and Miami-Dade County.”
Fors is the most recent person to announce his candidacy in what is now a four-way race to succeed Sosa, one of the County Commission’s longest tenured members who must leave office this year due to term limits. He faces three fellow Republicans — political and government relations specialist Kevin Marino Cabrera, business owner Dariel Fernandez and architect Orlando Lamas — in the (technically) nonpartisan contest.
District 6 cover the cities of Miami Springs, West Miami and Virginia Gardens; parts of Coral Gables, Hialeah and Miami; and several neighborhoods in Miami-Dade’s unincorporated area, including Schenley Park and Coral Villas, Red Bird, Coral Terrace, the Waterways, Glenvar Heights, Little Gables and Fontainebleau.
The district also contains Miami International Airport, one of the county’s two greatest economic engines along with PortMiami.
A longtime resident of the district, where he lives with his wife, Devyn Fors, and their three daughters, Fors is a former president of the Coral Gables Bar Association and the managing partner at FORS | Attorneys at Law.
Fors thanked the residents of Coral Gables “for their confidence in me over the years and who I look forward to continuing to represent on the County level.”
