Christina White to leave Miami-Dade Elections post to lead Parks Department

Christina White, a longtime fixture in Miami-Dade County’s elections operations, is departing after nearly two decades to take on a new role as Director of the Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces Department.

Mayor Daniella Levine Cava announced White’s appointment in a memo this week, marking the end of White’s 19-year tenure in the Elections Department, including almost a decade as the county’s appointed Supervisor of Elections (SOE).

After the November election, when Republican Alina Garcia won the SOE position in accordance with a 2018 referendum making the job a voter-chosen post, White transitioned into a newly created CEO role within the Elections Department.

White, a Democrat, initially planned to run to keep her SOE job, but ultimately decided against doing so.

White’s departure from the Elections Department closes a chapter of leadership that Garcia said she hopes to build on, defined by stability and trust in one of the most scrutinized public institutions.

“Christina has been an invaluable leader,” Garcia said in a statement Wednesday. “Her passion for public service and her commitment to integrity have left a lasting legacy.”

In an interview with the Miami Herald, Garcia credited White with leaving behind a well-organized and effective department.

“She’s a professional. She’s a great administrator. I’ve learned a lot from her,” Garcia said. “She really organized that department. It runs itself, basically.”

Still, Garcia noted the structure of the new elected office created a challenge.

“You can’t have two Supervisors of Elections,” she said.

White said in a statement that she is eager to take on her new role, effective June 2, where she “can continue to have a positive impact on the community.”

Appointed SOE in 2015 by then-Mayor Carlos Giménez, now a Republican Congressman, White led Florida’s largest — and the nation’s seventh-largest — elections operations, serving more than 1.5 million voters.

Under her leadership, the Department administered more than 300 municipal elections and 31 countywide contests, processing up to 500,000 mail-in ballots annually and managing 850 polling places.

White also oversaw a $46 million budget and a workforce that included thousands of temporary staff and poll workers, implemented two new voting systems, improved operational efficiency and enhanced voter access in education.

Throughout her career, she earned bipartisan praise for her professionalism and efficiency — particularly during the 2018 statewide recount, when Miami-Dade stood out for delivering results quickly in contrast to neighboring Broward County’s troubled process.

White will succeed Parks Director Maria Nardi, who has led the agency since 2017 and will be transitioning to an Assistant Director role with the county’s Department of Housing and Community Development.

Levine Cava said Nardi — who boasts a background and degrees in urban design, architecture and planning — will be responsible for land planning, development and communications for the Department.

The Elections Department, meanwhile, enters a new phase under the sole direction of Garcia, who won the race for Miami-Dade SOE on Nov. 5, beating Democratic ethics and elections lawyer J.C. Planas — a former state lawmaker — with 56% of the vote.

“The Miami-Dade County Supervisor of Elections Office remains focused on its mission to ensure fair, transparent, and efficient elections for all voters,” an SOE press note said. “Under Supervisor Garcia’s leadership, the office will continue to uphold the highest standards of professionalism, integrity, and efficiency in all aspects of election administration.”