Jesse Scheckner
At least one sitting Miami City Commissioner hopes to see government relations specialist Kevin Marino Cabrera on the Miami-Dade County Commission later this year.
On Wednesday, former state Senator and current Miami Commissioner Alex Díaz de la Portilla said he is “proud” to support Cabrera’s bid for the District 6 seat on the County Commission.
“He knows the city of Miami and understands our priorities,” Díaz de la Portilla said in a statement. “I look forward to working with him to address the needs of the residents of our community at the county level.”
The nod from Díaz de la Portilla is the 13th endorsement Cabrera has received since he began campaigning in late April. His other backers to date include former President Donald Trump, U.S. Rep. María Elvira Salazar, Florida Chief Financial Officer and Fire Marshal Jimmy Patronis, Miami state Rep. Daniel Perez, Hialeah Mayor Esteban “Steve” Bovo, Hialeah City Council members Bryan Calvo, Vivian Casals Muñoz and Luis Rodriguez, Council President Carl Zogby, and Miami-Dade state Rep. Anthony Rodriguez, who is running for another seat on the County Commission.
A local chapter of the Associated Builders and Contractors has also endorsed Cabrera, as has the Florida chapter of the Service Employees International Union.
Cabrera said the endorsement from Díaz de la Portilla confirms what he and his supporters have heard from neighbors throughout District 6, which encompasses a central portion of Miami-Dade, including all or part of the cities of Coral Gables, Hialeah, Miami, Miami Springs, Virginia Gardens, West Miami and some of the county’s unincorporated area.
“The residents of the city of Miami are ready for new leadership at the County Commission that will work with city leaders to help address the issues affecting them every day,” he said.
Cabrera is a Miami Republican who works as a senior vice president for the global strategy firm Mercury. He has worked for numerous GOP politicians, including as Florida State Director for Trump and the Republican National Committee in 2020 and in various roles for former Gov. Jeb Bush, former U.S. Rep. Carlos Curbelo and Florida Supreme Court Justice John Couriel.
Cabrera has held public office once, serving as an elected Councilman on a Miami-Dade land-use zoning board.
He is married to Republican state Rep. Demi Busatta Cabrera.
This year, he faces three opponents in the technically nonpartisan contest to succeed longtime District 6 Miami-Dade Commissioner Rebeca Sosa, who must leave office due to term limits voters approved in 2012.
Two of his opponents — entrepreneur Dariel Fernandez and Coral Gables Commissioner Jorge Fors Jr., who secured an endorsement from Sosa — are fellow Republicans. The lone Democrat in the race is Miami Springs Councilman Victor Vázquez, a lifelong educator and Air Force veteran.
Miami-Dade law requires a County Commission candidate to receive more than half the votes cast during the Aug. 23 Primary to win office.
If no candidate captures that share of the vote, the two candidates who receive the highest number of votes will compete in a runoff Nov. 8.
