For over 100 years, the city of Coral Gables has held its elections in April. This week, residents will decide whether that tradition will come to an end, aligning with general elections instead.
Whether to move elections from April to November is just one of eight proposed amendments residents have an opportunity to vote on by Tuesday April 21. But it is by far the most controversial, alongside the fact that it is being run as a mail-in ballot, with the option to drop off a ballot at the Supervisor of Elections office in Doral by 7 p.m.
Susan Dacosta, who works in the Coral Gables City Clerk’s office, said that this election could change the way things have been done for a century.
“The city has held its elections in April for over a hundred years, it is historic,” said Dacosta. Standing behind her desk at City Hall, she said that, “only about 15 to 20 percent of the city's roughly 30,000 eligible voters typically show up.”
But for those arguing to move the election — most notably Mayor Vince Lago — that’s precisely why things need to change.
“The evidence is clear,” Lago argued in a recent Substack post. “November elections mean more residents vote in local races. And more residents voting in local races means better, more representative government.”
He told Axios that an April election costs the city about $125,000 rather than the approximate $20,000 to join the November ballot.
Low turnout is not unique to Coral Gables, and impacts democracy across America.
“Election timing is one of the most important policies for understanding what turnout is going to be,” University of Miami political scientist Matthew Nelson told Community Wire. “Municipalities that hold their municipal elections off-cycle see voter turnout drop precipitously … that is true across cities throughout the United States.”
The first amendment, if it passes, would change the city of Coral Gables’ election date from April of every odd year to November of every even year, in line with general elections.
Advocates say that could only be good for democracy, while those opposed say that it will allow local issues to get swallowed up by outside interests and will put more power in the hands of wealthy developers.
Commissioners Melissa Castro and Ariel Fernandez have led the latter argument, adding that with a November ballot — especially in a year packed with races for the White House, Congress and the governor’s mansion — local issues and races won’t get the attention they deserve.
Mail-in Ballots: Convenient or Counting Fewer Voters?
Fernandez expressed concerns not only about the content of the amendments, but also about the way the referendum is being managed.
“My biggest concern is, this should have been done as referendums on the city’s routine elections,” Fernandez said in an interview, pointing out that the current vote is being held entirely by mail. This method can discourage participation and even risk ballots not being counted if requirements are not met.
“There are extra requirements for folks to send those ballots in, and there is a potential that your vote does not get counted,” he said.
He also criticized the cost of the special election, arguing it is money that “did not need to be spent” and could have been handled later at a lower cost.
Fernandez also pushed back against the idea that moving elections to November would significantly boost turnout, warning that local issues would be overshadowed by national politics.
“A lot of folks, when it comes to November, they’re there to vote for a president… they’re not voting down the ballot,” he said. He added that April elections keep the focus on city-specific concerns like zoning, public safety, and local services, rather than what he described as “toxic” national debates.
Experts say November ballots encourage participation
Stephanie Puello, an assistant professor in the department of political science at the University of Miami, told CommunityWire that studies point in the direction of a clear trend: When local elections are held on Election Day in November, more voters show up.
“Research does show that if you have the elections in November, that does increase turnout, particularly among folks who might be less likely to show up – low-income folks, minority voters, and other core constituencies,” Puello said. “In some cases, consolidating municipal elections with national cycles increases turnout by 20% or more.”
On the charter amendment that would lock the new date in place, she said the procedural protection would make it difficult if not impossible for a future commission to undo the decision made this week.
“What that would do would be to kind of prevent a commission from quietly, potentially moving the elections back to a low-turnout date,” she explained. “Those procedural protections also matter, because reforms that can be easily undone by simple majorities often are.”
However, she warned that the transitions could come with some risks.
“The language could be dense,” Puello said. “People might see these city races, along those federal races, and they don't understand what they're voting on. That might lead to what we call a ballot rolloff, where people just vote for president, but they skip everything else because they don't know.”
This tendency was confirmed by CommmunityWire’s reporting. Not everyone who lives in Coral Gables was aware that it was time to vote, but some had strong feelings once they found out.
Jaylene Baiamonte, 24, dressed with a “protect the planet” shirt, was on her way to Barnes & Nobles when she stopped to talk. A fashion photographer who grew up in Miami Gardens, she said she had never voted before, but this year is different.
On the question of moving local elections to November, she didn’t hesitate. “It should be changed to November. It makes more sense because [people] know that is voting time and are more aware of who and what they’re voting for. I didn’t even know voting was in April for some cities and I’m sure a lot of people are not aware.”
Baiamonte said the current political climate has made her more alert at every level.
“I’m Latina, and one of the reasons I want to vote is because I’ve seen how the current state of the country has affected people around me that I love so much,” she said. “I have friends whose parents lost their jobs because they were undocumented … I’ve seen a lot of issues and the effects of those issues on them.”
She said that in-person voting might have increased participation.
“I think people should have the option to vote in person or send in the ballot. More people would do it if they had the option for both,” she said.
Not every resident shares that urgency. Alina Tognoni, who was taking a rest from shopping on an outdoor couch in Merrick Park, laughed when asked about local elections. She has lived in Miami since she was 23 and has rarely been one to vote.
However, when the referendum was explained, she did have a strong opinion. She said that more people would be encouraged to vote if local elections were moved to November. “I think that everything should be together,” said Tognoni, 63.
If the date does change, said political scientist Puello, the responsibility of keeping voters informed falls on the supervisor of elections. Efforts need to start early, she said.
“There have to be notification campaigns, mailers, social media, community meetings,” Puello said. “It needs to be really targeted, especially on people who historically do show up in April. Sending these kinds of announcements repeatedly through multiple channels would help change that behavior.”
As of Monday, more than 8,3000 ballots had been received, amounting to about 28% of eligible voters.
Whether Coral Gables holds on to its century-old pattern or joins more of the nation by voting in November is a decision that now rests in the hands of the voters. For a city where almost 80% of the population eligible to vote typically sit out local elections, the referendum carries some irony: residents are being asked to vote on how to make more of them vote.
This story was written by Leelou Lambolez and reported by Lambolez, Alison Senker, Mary Stose and Ate’sia Wallace.
It was originally published by CommunityWire.Miami, an independent, community news outlet in the School of Communication at the University of Miami. The news service, staffed primarily by graduate journalism students, provides coverage of the university’s nearby cities.
