Hernandez, Martinez Face Runoff Election For Hialeah Mayor

HIALEAH (CBSMiami) – A runoff will determine who will rule the second-largest city in the county.

The top two finishers for Hialeah mayor were current Mayor Carlos Hernandez and former Mayor Raul Martinez. They finished with 40% and 34% of the vote, respectively.

The other candidates, former state Senator Rudy Garcia, finished with 26% of the vote, and political newcomer George Castro finished with .3%.

Martinez, who was first elected to the council at age 28, held the mayor's office for nearly a quarter-century.  Both men are lifelong Hialeah politics mainstays who have outraised Hernandez. Yet Hernandez, a former city police officer, has been holding his own.

"I feel very positive and I'm extremely excited, but it's all in god's hands and the residents of Hialeah's hands," said Garcia.

"We feel very confident. The people who voted early, the people who voted by mail, we feel confident that we're going to succeed tonight," said Martinez.

Hernandez is hoping he'll be able to hold onto his title.

Most recently, he's been at the center of a budget battle that could reduce the city's firefighting force by 40 percent, eliminating 105 firefighter positions if an agreement with the union is not reached by the end of the month.  Despite this, Hernandez says voters like what he's done in the city.

"I think they have seen that I'm a mayor of action and not false promises. And I think that my work speaks for itself, and I think that's why the public is being so supportive of me today," said Hernandez.  "I'm very grateful."

If early and absentee voting are any indication, turnout Tuesday will be moderate to high. More absentee ballots have been sent and received in the Hialeah races than in the recent county mayor's race.

The ballot also features five citywide council races.

In the Group 1 Council Seat, a runoff will be held between Lourdes Lozano and  Alex Morales.

In the Group 2 Council Seat race, incumbent Jose Caragol  was victorious over Julio Jose Martinez and Ramiro Sicre with 54% of the vote.

There will be a runoff between incumbent Vivian Casalas-Munoz and Danny Bolanos for the Group 3 Council seat.

Council President Isis Garcia-Martinez beat out Cindy Miel with 53% of the vote to reclaim her Group 4 seat.

Incumbent Paul Hernandez will face a runoff against Frank Lago for his Group 6 seat.

Voters also passed a Charter change which sets the Mayor's salary at $150,000 annually with a $40,000 a year expense account.

The runoff election will take place on November 15th.

COMPLETE ELECTION INFORMATION IN CBS4′S SPECIAL ELECTION SECTION