Meet the candidates in North Miami's mayoral election

State of play: The Nov. 5 election is headlined by a rematch between Mayor Alix Desulme and former state Sen. Daphne Campbell. The pair last met in a 2012 state House race that Campbell won.

• The other candidates are accountant Naomi Esther Blemur and retired doctor Hector Medina.

What they're saying: The candidates tell Axios some of the big issues facing the city are its aging water treatment plant, high utility rates and a lack of affordable housing.

• The Winson Water Plant, which opened in 1962, regularly leaks, affecting water pressure in some areas of the city, Desulme says.
• The city has raised utility rates in recent years to fund an overhaul of the plant, the Miami Times has reported.
• This month, the city increased the water rate by 8.4% and the sewer rate by 8.6%.

Let's meet the candidates

Alix Desulme

Desulme, the Haitian-American former councilman and city clerk appointed mayor by the City Council in 2022, was targeted in an August cyber attack that exposed his bank information, an old passport and a mysterious nude photo he says he didn't recognize.

• The breach, which remains under investigation, crippled city services and forced City Hall to temporarily shut down.

Desulme was supposed to face re-election in May 2023 but he and the Council voted to postpone the election and extend their terms in office.

• Residents protested the vote and one of Desulme's opponents, Medina, filed an unsuccessful lawsuit arguing the delay was undemocratic.
• Desulme says moving the city's elections to coincide with the presidential race will save the city money and boost voter turnout.

What he's saying: During his time in office, Desulme says he led the creation of a municipal food pantry, a new resident liaison position and a utility assistance program for people struggling to pay their bills.

• Desulme, who views replacing the water plant as a top priority, says he doesn't think the utility fees are unfairly high, but that a new plant would help lower costs.
• He says his administration is addressing affordable housing, flooding and issues with garbage collection.

Daphne Campbell

Campbell, who served eight years in the Florida Legislature, tells Axios the city's most pressing issues are flooding, financial mismanagement and a lack of affordable housing.

• The former lawmaker and registered nurse says she wants to lower utility fees and taxes — and that voters should trust her record in Tallahassee, including funding local projects and advocating for renters facing eviction and poor living conditions.

Yes, but: Her tenure was marked by a series of scandals, like when she texted a Florida Power & Light lobbyist during Hurricane Irma to get power restored for her family members, including her "sick mom." (Her mother died in 1996.)

• Campbell, who is Haitian-American, said she was using a Caribbean term of respect.

• In 2018, Campbell was voted out of office after Democrats criticized her "history of questionable ethics" — along with her votes opposing same-sex adoption and limiting abortion access.

Naomi Esther Blemur

Blemur is the chairwoman of the North Miami Commission for Women and a member of several city boards,

• If elected, she says she would work to bring the city's senior center back online, organize youth programming and invest in small businesses.
• She also wants to improve the city's parks, which she says lack restrooms and water fountains, and create incentives to develop affordable housing.

Flashback: Blemur, who was the Democratic nominee for Florida Agriculture Commissioner in 2022, came under fire for old Facebook posts in which she called abortion a "sin" and appeared to defend anti-gay comments.

• The Haitian-American minister, who lost in the general election, tells Axios she abides by "conservative values" in her private life but doesn't believe the government should infringe on anyone's right to have an abortion or get married.
• "I truly believe that every man and woman in this country…has the right to make the best decisions for themselves."

Hector Medina

Medina, who is on his third try running for mayor, says if elected he would lower his salary, call for a forensic audit of the city budget and propose pausing new development to review the city's land development regulations.

• The retired physician says City Hall is run unprofessionally, pointing to the 2022 vote to extend the council's term limits.
• Medina says he's been attending local homeowner association meetings for years and knows the residents personally.
• He argues his prior supervisory work, including at a homeless shelter in New York City, gives him the management and budget experience to be mayor.