Meet the candidates for City of Miami commission in the Nov. 4 election

The intrigue: In the District 3 race, eight candidates are vying to succeed Joe Carollo, who is term-limited and running for mayor — including his brother, Frank Carollo, whose fundraising has far outpaced that of his rivals.

• Two other candidates in that race — Denise Galvez Turros and Rolando Escalona — are going to trial just days before election day to resolve a lawsuit filed by Galvez Turros claiming Escalona doesn't actually live in the district, the Miami Herald reported.
• Escalona has rejected the claims.

District 3

Oscar Elio Alejandro: U.S. Navy veteran.

Yvonne Alexandria Bayona: Former president of the Miami Historic East Shenandoah Homeowners Association and former chairwoman of the code enforcement and nuisance abatement board.

Brenda Maribel Betancourt: President of the Calle 8 Inter-American Chamber of Commerce.

Frank Carollo: The younger brother of sitting commissioner Joe Carollo, Frank Carollo served twice as the District 3 commissioner, from 2009 to 2013 and from 2013 to 2017.

Rolando Escalona: Restaurant manager and real estate broker.

Denise Galvez Turros: Co-founded Latinas for Trump with Miami Republican Sen. Ileana Garcia. She unsuccessfully ran for a commission seat in 2017.

Robert Franklin (Rob) Piper III: Former U.S. Marine Corps Forces, South member with a doctoral degree in international relations and affairs from Florida International University, per Florida Politics.

Fayez Tanous: Special aide to the City of Miami mayor, per his LinkedIn.

District 5

Marion K. Brown: A construction executive who ran unsuccessfully for the seat in 2024.

Frederick Bryant: Retired teacher and longtime community activist.

Christine King: Incumbent, first elected in 2021. She's an attorney and former constituent services chief for the Miami-Dade County Commission.

Go deeper:

• Six candidates are vying to replace Francis Suarez as Miami's mayor. Get to know them here before you vote.
• Miami voters will decide four referendums, including on whether to establish lifetime term limits or to make it easier for the city to sell certain public lands. Click here for our guide.