Jesse Scheckner
New polling shows that former state Sen. Annette Taddeo has expanded her lead even further over incumbent Miami-Dade Clerk and Comptroller Juan Fernandez-Barquin.
A late August survey found Taddeo, a Democrat, now enjoys a 12-percentage-point advantage over Fernandez-Barquin, a Republican — up from 10 points in early August and eight points in May.
Notably, the two earlier polls were conducted internally by Taddeo’s campaign adviser, Christian Ulvert, and Plantation-based MDW Communications. The new numbers are from Sarasota-headquartered SEA Polling & Strategic Design, which in October 2022 determined Taddeo was in a “statistical tie” in a congressional race with incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. María Elvira Salazar. Salazar went on to win by a landslide.
SEA surveyed 400 Miami-Dade voters by phone, text, and email from Aug. 27 to 30. The firm modeled the poll with a turnout of 41% Democrat, 36% Republican, and 23% NPA and a racial breakdown of 58% Hispanic, 20% White, 17% Black, and 5% Other.
The poll had a 4.9% margin of error.
In a head-to-head matchup with Fernandez-Barquin, not counting write-in candidate Rubin Young, 53% of respondents said they were likely to vote for Taddeo. Forty-one percent said they preferred Fernandez-Barquin, a former state lawmaker Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed Clerk in June 2023. The remaining 6% said they were undecided.
In a statement, Ulvert said Taddeo’s “clear vision and plan for the office that needs to modernize, streamline and expand its services” differentiate her from Fernandez.
“Sen. Taddeo heads into the final stretch of the General Election with a continued strong base of support and the resources to communicate effectively to build on her numbers,” he said. “Moreover, Annette Taddeo has shown to have the trust and support of residents and it’s reflective in her base of support, and as voters continue to learn more about her proven record and trusted experience, her numbers only grow.”
Taddeo, a former Chair of the Miami-Dade Democratic Party who served in the Senate from 2017 to 2022, is competing with Fernandez-Barquin, an attorney who served in the House from 2018 to mid-2023, to be the county’s first voter-chosen Clerk since Harvey Ruvin.
Ruvin served as Clerk from 1992 until his death at 85 on Dec. 31, 2022. During the 2020 election, more Miami-Dade residents cast votes for him than any other candidate on the ballot, including those running for President, Congress and Mayor.
The General Election is on Nov. 5.
