Alexander Penelas (born December 18, 1961) is an American attorney who is the former mayor of

Miami-Dade County Miami-Dade County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Florida. The county had a population of 2,701,767 as of the 2020 census, making it the most populous county in Florida and the seventh-most populous county in ...

, Florida.

Education and personal life

Penelas, an American of Cuban descent, attended St. Thomas University and graduated in 1981 with a degree in political science. In 1985, he received his J.D. degree from the

University of Miami School of Law The University of Miami School of Law (Miami Law or UM Law) is the law school of the University of Miami, a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. Founded in 1926, the University of Miami School of Law is the oldest law school in ...

, where he graduated ''cum laude'' and was inducted into the university's

Iron Arrow Honor Society The Iron Arrow Honor Society is an honor society at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida for students, faculty, staff and alumni. It is the highest honor that can be bestowed by the university. Founded at the University of Miami in 1 ...

. Penelas and his wife, Lilliam, have two adult sons, William and Christopher, and a younger daughter, Alexandra.

Political life

Alex Penelas served on the city council of

Hialeah, Florida Hialeah ( ; ) is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. With a population of 223,109 as of the 2020 census, Hialeah is the sixth-largest city in Florida. It is the second largest city by population in the Miami metropolitan area ...

from 1987 to 1990. In 1990, he was elected to serve as a county commissioner in Dade County.

Miami-Dade Mayor

Penelas ran in 1996 for Mayor of Dade County, renamed Miami-Dade County in 1997. Penelas advanced to the runoff for Mayor against fellow Commissoner

Arthur Teele Arthur E. "Art" Teele Jr. (May 14, 1946 – July 27, 2005) was an American lawyer and politician from the Republican Party. In the early 1980s, he served as the head of the Urban Mass Transportation Administration (now known as the Federal Tra ...

. Penelas scored 37% to Teele's 25% with former

mayor of Miami Below is a list of Mayors of the City of Miami, Florida, United States. List of mayors See also * Government of the City of Miami * * Timeline of Miami * List of mayors of Miami-Dade County, Florida, 1964–present * Miami City Hall Ref ...

Maurice Ferre and

Xavier Suarez Xavier Louis Suarez (born May 21, 1949) is an American politician who was the first Cuban-born Mayor of Miami and was a Miami-Dade county commissioner. Early life and education He was born on May 21, 1949, in Las Villas, Cuba. Suarez attended t ...

in third and fourth. In the run-off Penelas soundly beat Teele with 60.56% to Teele's 39.44%. Penelas ran for reelection in 2000 and beat Miami Dade Commissioner

Miguel Diaz de la Portilla --> Miguel is a given name and surname, the Portuguese and Spanish form of the Hebrew name Michael (given name), Michael. It may refer to: Places *Pedro Miguel, a parish in the municipality of Horta and the island of Faial in the Azores Islands ...

with 51.6% to Diaz de la Portilla's 20.9%. Because Penelas reached the 50% threshold, a runoff was not needed. As mayor, he vocally opposed the repatriation of Elián González in 2000, but was not successful in stopping the repatriation.

2004 Senate campaign

In 2004, Penelas was term-limited as mayor and ran for 2004 United States Senate election in Florida. This was the first open Senate seat since 1980, it was being vacated by longtime incumbent and Dade County native Bob Graham. Penelas finished third in the primary, behind

Betty Castor Elizabeth Castor (née Bowe; born May 11, 1941) is an American educator and former politician. Castor was elected to the Florida Senate and as Florida Education Commissioner, and she subsequently served as the President of the University of So ...

and

Peter Deutsch Peter R. Deutsch (born April 1, 1957) is an American politician from the U.S. state of Florida. Deutsch was a Democratic Representative from Florida's 20th congressional district from 1993 until 2005. Background Deutsch was born in the boro ...

. His campaign was made more difficult when

Al Gore Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (born March 31, 1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. Gore was the Democratic Part ...

called him "the single most treacherous and dishonest person I dealt with during the 2000 presidential election campaign anywhere in America."

2020 mayoral bid

In April 2019, Penelas announced his campaign for re-election to the office of Miami-Dade County Mayor, a position he previously occupied for eight years. Penelas initially led in most polls but finished in third in the first round behind

Daniella Levine Cava Daniella Levine Cava (born September 14, 1955) is an American lawyer, social worker, and politician who has served as the mayor of Miami-Dade County, Florida since 2020. Previously, she was a Miami-Dade County Commissioner from 2014 until her el ...

and

Esteban Bovo Esteban L. "Steve" Bovo Jr. (born June 12, 1962) is an American Republican politician from Florida and the current mayor of Hialeah, Florida. Bovo previously served on the Hialeah City Council, in the Florida House of Representatives, and on th ...

References

External links

"Alex Penelas Contronts a Tough Critic: His Own Party"
''

St. Petersburg Times The ''Tampa Bay Times'', previously named the ''St. Petersburg Times'' until 2011, is an American newspaper published in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. It has won fourteen Pulitzer Prizes since 1964, and in 2009, won two in a single ...

'', August 31, 2003.
"Alex Penelas, former Miami-Dade Mayor, to Provide Political Commentary and Analysis for Univision"

Univision Univision () is an American Spanish-language free-to-air television network owned by TelevisaUnivision. It is the United States' largest provider of Spanish-language content. The network's programming is aimed at the Latino public and includes ...

statement, December 17, 2004.
"Al Politics Is Loco"
''

The American Spectator ''The American Spectator'' is a conservative American magazine covering news and politics, edited by R. Emmett Tyrrell Jr. and published by the non-profit American Spectator Foundation. It was founded in 1967 by Tyrrell, who remains its editor- ...

'', June 8, 2004.
Alex Penelas at University of Miami Famous Alumni
{{DEFAULTSORT:Penelas, Alex 1961 births Living people American politicians of Cuban descent Florida Democrats Mayors of Miami-Dade County, Florida Politicians from Miami St. Thomas University (Florida) alumni University of Miami School of Law alumni Florida city council members Television personalities from Florida