1996 Metro-Dade County mayoral election

1996 Dade County mayoral election
	September 1, 1996, October 1, 1996
	September 1, 1996, October 1, 1996
Mayor before election; Stephen P. Clark; Democratic	Elected Mayor ; Alex Penelas; Democratic

The 1996 Metro-Dade County mayoral election took place on September 1, 1996. It was the first election in the Metro Dade County area (now Miami-Dade County) since the election of Stephen P. Clark. The election pitted various well-known and popular figures in the Miami-Dade area. Maurice Ferre and Xavier Suarez (both former Mayors of Miami) and former rivals in the 1987 Miami Mayor race, Arthur Teele (a wealthy African-American County Commissioner) and young former Hialeah City Councilman Alex Penelas along with several other minor candidates. County Commissioners Arthur Teele and Alex Penelas would go on to the run-off. Penelas's victory made him the first Cuban-American mayor in Dade County and as of 2020, the only Democrat Cuban-American. Penelas also has the distinction of being the youngest mayor elected in Miami Dade County history at the age of 34. Arthur Teele was the first African American man to run for Dade County mayor.

Candidates

Alex Penelas, Incumbent County Commissioner and former Hialeah City Councilman
Arthur Teele, Incumbent County Commissioner and former Head of the Urban Mass Transportation Administration
Maurice Ferre, Incumbent County Commissioner and former Mayor of Miami
Xavier Suarez, former Mayor of Miami
William Perry
Charles F Knapp Jr, candidate for Metro-Dade County Commission, District 8
Clennon W King, perennial candidate, candidate for Metro-Dade County Commission, District 3
Rachele Fruit, perennial candidate and Communist activist
Juan Miguel Alfonso, candidate for Hialeah city council and Hialeah mayor
Manny Gonzalez-Goenaga
Dori De Falc

First round election results

Dade County mayoral election, 1996[1]
	Candidate	Votes	%
Democratic	Alex Penelas	97,968	36.78%
Republican	Arthur Teele	67,240	25.25%
Democratic	Maurice Ferre	55,239	20.74%
Independent	Xavier Suarez	36,725	10.98%
Independent	William Perry	4,243	1.59%
Independent	Charles F Knapp	1,662	0.62%
Independent	Clennon W King	913	0.34%
Independent Socialist	Rachele Fruit	741	0.28%

References

"Our Campaigns - Dade County Mayor - Primary Race - Sep 02, 1996". www.ourcampaigns.com.

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[1] "Our Campaigns - Dade County Mayor - Primary Race - Sep 02, 1996". www.ourcampaigns.com.