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
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
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
since 2020. Previously, she was a
Miami-Dade County Commissioner
The government of Miami-Dade County is defined and authorized under the Constitution of Florida, Florida law, and the Home Rule Charter of Miami-Dade County.
Since its formation in 1957, Miami-Dade County, Florida has had a two-tier system of ...
from 2014 until her election as mayor.
She is the first woman and the first person of
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
descent to serve as mayor of Miami-Dade County.
Early life and education
Daniella Levine was born on September 14, 1955, in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. She traveled throughout
Latin America
Latin America or
* french: Amérique Latine, link=no
* ht, Amerik Latin, link=no
* pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...
in her youth, including to
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...
and
Santiago
Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whose ...
. She later attended
Yale University
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
, where she served as the President of the Student Council, graduating in 1977 with a
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
in psychology. She later attended
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
, receiving a
Juris Doctor
The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law
and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...
in 1981 and a
Master of Social Work
The Master of Social Work (MSW) is a master's degree in the field of social work. It is a professional degree with specializations compared to Bachelor of Social Work (BSW). MSW promotes macro-, mezzo- and micro-aspects of professional social wor ...
in 1983. She moved to
Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
in 1980 with her husband, Dr. Robert Cava.
Legal and non-profit career
Upon her arrival to Miami in 1980, Levine Cava became an attorney with Legal Services of Greater Miami, later leaving in 1985 after becoming legal director for the
Guardian Ad Litem
A legal guardian is a person who has been appointed by a court or otherwise has the legal authority (and the corresponding duty) to make decisions relevant to the personal and property interests of another person who is deemed incompetent, calle ...
program, a court-run child welfare legal program. During her time as a lawyer, she served on the
Florida Bar Committee on Legal Needs of Children. In 1992, following
Hurricane Andrew
Hurricane Andrew was a very powerful and destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that struck the Bahamas, Florida, and Louisiana in August 1992. It is the most destructive hurricane to ever hit Florida in terms of structures damaged ...
, she was appointed as the
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 ...
program manager for the
Florida Department of Children and Families
The Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF) is a state agency of Florida. Its headquarters are at 2415 North Monroe St., Ste. 400 in Tallahassee, Florida. The department provides social services to children, adults, refugees, domesti ...
, holding the position until 1994. The following year, she founded a youth outreach program with
Barry University
Barry University is a private Catholic university in Miami Shores, Florida. Founded in 1940 by the Adrian Dominican Sisters, it is one of the largest Catholic universities in the Southeast and is within the territory of the Archdiocese of Miami ...
.
In 1996, Levine Cava founded the Human Services Coalition, later renamed Catalyst Miami, which, through partnerships with the
United Way
United Way is an international network of over 1,800 local nonprofit fundraising affiliates. United Way was the largest nonprofit organization in the United States by donations from the public, prior to 2016.
United Way organizations raise funds ...
and local businesses, aids low-income families with monetary advice. At Catalyst Miami, she launched the Prosperity Campaign which helps people increase their income and savings, allowing families to build financial security. She served as the president and chief executive officer of Catalyst Miami until 2013.
Political career
Miami-Dade County commission
In 2013, Levine Cava, a
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
, ran against incumbent Miami-Dade County District 8 Commissioner Lynda Bell, a
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
. The district includes much of southern Miami-Dade County, including
suburban
A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...
localities like
West Kendall and
Cutler Bay, and agricultural communities like
Homestead
Homestead may refer to:
*Homestead (buildings), a farmhouse and its adjacent outbuildings; by extension, it can mean any small cluster of houses
* Homestead (unit), a unit of measurement equal to 160 acres
*Homestead principle, a legal concept t ...
and
Redland. Levine Cava entered the race in 2014.
Levine Cava narrowly defeated Bell in the August 26 election, receiving 52% of the vote to Bell's 48%.
In 2016, Levine Cava sponsored legislation in the Miami-Dade County Commission that requires local candidates for office to register when they raise money for
political action committees.
Levine Cava won reelection in 2018, receiving over 61% of the vote.
In November 2019, Levine Cava published a letter in the
Miami Herald
The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by the McClatchy Company and headquartered in Doral, Florida, a List of communities in Miami-Dade County, Florida, city in western Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County and the M ...
criticizing the
Florida State Legislature
The Florida Legislature is the legislature of the U.S. State of Florida. It is organized as a bicameral body composed of an upper chamber, the Senate, and a lower chamber, the House of Representatives. Article III, Section 1 of the Florida Cons ...
for diverting funds for affordable housing. This diverted nearly $1.4 billion to balance the state budget. She also created the Infill Housing Program which aims to build affordable housing on County-owned land in her district.
During her tenure, Levine Cava has advocated for the protection of the environment. In 2017, she sponsored the resolution to support the
Paris climate agreement
The Paris Agreement (french: Accord de Paris), often referred to as the Paris Accords or the Paris Climate Accords, is an international treaty on climate change. Adopted in 2015, the agreement covers climate change mitigation, adaptation, and ...
. In response to the presence of fecal bacteria in
Biscayne Bay
Biscayne Bay () is a lagoon with characteristics of an estuary located on the Atlantic coast of South Florida. The northern end of the lagoon is surrounded by the densely developed heart of the Miami metropolitan area while the southern end is la ...
in early 2020, she also sponsored legislation to improve water testing in the area.
In 2018, Levine Cava created an initiative to protect pedestrians and bikers from harm's way. The initiative featured a plan for engaging with the business community to create incentives that could train people to be better drivers and an agenda for improving biking accessibility on roads.
Levine Cava gained endorsements from labor unions like the
Service Employees International Union
Service Employees International Union (SEIU) is a labor union representing almost 1.9 million workers in over 100 occupations in the United States and Canada. SEIU is focused on organizing workers in three sectors: healthcare (over half of member ...
, and the
AFL–CIO
The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL–CIO) is the largest federation of unions in the United States. It is made up of 56 national and international unions, together representing more than 12 million ac ...
, and environmental groups like the
Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is an environmental organization with chapters in all 50 United States, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico. The club was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by Scottish-American preservationist John Muir, who be ...
.
Mayor of Miami-Dade County
Election
In early 2020, Levine Cava announced her run for the
2020 Miami-Dade County mayoral election
The 2020 Miami-Dade County mayoral election was held on November 3, 2020, to determine the mayor of Miami-Dade County, Florida. County Commissioner Daniella Levine Cava defeated fellow commissioner Esteban Bovo. Incumbent Mayor Carlos A. Gimén ...
, to succeed incumbent Mayor
Carlos Giménez, who was term-limited. She earned the endorsements of many major organizations and newspapers, including the Miami Herald, and received the endorsement of many prominent Democrats, including congresswomen
Debbie Mucarsel-Powell
Debbie Jessika Mucarsel-Powell (born January 18, 1971) is an Ecuadorian-born American politician and academic administrator who served as a U.S. representative for from 2019 to 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, her district covered the w ...
and
Donna Shalala
Donna Edna Shalala ( ; born February 14, 1941) is an American politician and academic who served in the Carter and Clinton administrations, as well as in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2019 to 2021. Shalala is a recipient of the Presid ...
. Levine Cava has also received significant funding from
Donald Sussman
Selwyn Donald Sussman (born June 8, 1946) is an American asset manager and philanthropist who is the founder and chief investment officer of the Paloma Funds. Sussman has served on the boards of a number of civic, cultural, educational, and rese ...
, a
hedge fund
A hedge fund is a pooled investment fund that trades in relatively liquid assets and is able to make extensive use of more complex trading, portfolio-construction, and risk management techniques in an attempt to improve performance, such as sho ...
executive who was the largest single donor to
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States sen ...
in the
2016 United States presidential election
The 2016 United States presidential election was the 58th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 8, 2016. The Republican ticket of businessman Donald Trump and Indiana governor Mike Pence defeated the Democratic ticket ...
.
In the August 18 primary, Levine Cava placed second behind fellow Commissioner
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 ...
, receiving 28% to Bovo's 29%, with former County Mayor
Alex Penelas
Alexander Penelas (born December 18, 1961) is an American attorney who is the former mayor of Miami-Dade County, Florida.
Education and personal life
Penelas, an American of Cuban descent, attended St. Thomas University and graduated in 1981 ...
trailing in third with 24%. Because neither Levine Cava or Bovo received over 50% of the vote, this triggered a
runoff election
The two-round system (TRS), also known as runoff voting, second ballot, or ballotage, is a voting method used to elect a single candidate, where voters cast a single vote for their preferred candidate. It generally ensures a majoritarian resul ...
between the two candidates, which was held on November 3, 2020. Levine Cava won the runoff election with 54% of the vote.
[
]
Tenure
2021 Surfside condominium building collapse
In late June, Levine Cava garnered national attention for her response to the Surfside condominium building collapse.
Electoral history
Personal life
Levine Cava is Jewish. She is married to Robert Cava, a Miami-Dade physician of Italian American
Italian Americans ( it, italoamericani or ''italo-americani'', ) are Americans who have full or partial Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeast and industrial Midwestern metropolitan areas, ...
descent. They have two children, Eliza and Edward.
Awards
For her nonprofit work, Levine Cava has the Most Distinguished Pioneer Award from the National Alliance to Nurture the Aged and the Youth and the Joanne Hayes Democracy and Mentoring Award from the League of Women Voters.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Levine Cava, Daniella
1955 births
21st-century American lawyers
21st-century American women lawyers
Columbia University alumni
County commissioners in Florida
Jewish American people in Florida politics
Florida lawyers
Living people
21st-century American politicians
21st-century American women politicians
Florida Democrats
Mayors of Miami-Dade County, Florida
Women mayors of places in Florida
Politicians from New York City
Lawyers from New York City
Yale University alumni
21st-century American Jews