Miami-Dade County Commissioner Vicki Lopez’s campaign to keep her District 5 seat now has support from a majority of the Miami Beach Commission.
This week, Lopez’s campaign announced endorsements from City Commissioners Laura Dominguez and Monica Matteo-Salinas.
They join two other Miami Beach officials — Commissioners Tanya Katzoff Bhatt and Alex Fernandez — backing Lopez.
Dominguez, who handily won re-election alongside Fernandez in early November, called Lopez “a proven partner for Miami Beach who understands what our residents need.”
She cited Lopez’s work as a state lawmaker on condo safety and “real solutions on housing.”
“Vicki is thoughtful, collaborative, and knows how to turn priorities into action,” she said in a statement. “I look forward to continuing to work together to keep Miami Beach safe, resilient, and strong.”
Matteo-Salinas, a former City Hall aide who won her seat in December with 71% of the vote, said Lopez has earned the trust of her constituents “not with words, but with action.”
“Vicki shows up prepared, principled, and genuinely committed to getting it right. She doesn’t lead for the headlines. She leads for the people,” she said in a statement.
“She has been a true partner to our city by being accessible, collaborative, and never too busy to pick up the phone when our residents need answers. Vicki Lopez is the kind of leader our community deserves: experienced, accountable, and deeply rooted in the values that make this county a place we’re proud to call home. I am proud to support her campaign to continue to lead as our county commissioner.”
Lopez, in a statement, expressed gratitude for “the support of leaders who are working every day to serve Miami Beach residents.”
“Our partnership with municipal leaders is essential to tackling the issues that matter most — from housing and safety to infrastructure and quality of life,” she said. “I look forward to continuing that work together.”
Lopez, who was appointed by her County Commission peers last year, raised nearly $589,000 last quarter, far outpacing her lone challenger, Florida Highway Patrol trooper and former Miami Commissioner Joe Sanchez.
Both Lopez and Sanchez are Republicans. Bhatt, Domiguez, Fernandez and Matteo-Salinas are all Democrats.
District 5 includes the cities of Miami and Miami Beach.
All County Commission candidates will be on the Aug. 18 Primary ballot, as those races and others in the county are technically nonpartisan.
If no candidate in a given contest receives more than 50% of the vote, the top two candidates will compete in a Nov. 3 runoff.
Two men from Germany were arrested after police said they were caught on surveillance video defacing a bench with antisemitic graffiti in Miami Beach.
Authorities said it happened Monday at around 5:34 p.m., when Miami Beach police officers responded to the area of 12th Street and Ocean Drive.
Police said officers found writing including a swastika and the words “Adolf Was Here” on an LGBTQIA+ bench located within Lummus Park.
Using surveillance video from city cameras, police were able to track down the two men involved.
MIAMI BEACH POLICE DEPARTMENT
MIAMI BEACH POLICE DEPARTMENT Two men from Germany were arrested after police said they were caught on surveillance video defacing a bench with antisemitic graffiti in Miami Beach.
According to arrest reports, the footage shows how 58-year-old Christoph Rehak asked one of his friends for a marker, then he and 63-year-old Gunther Jekschtat sat on the bench next to each other.
“Mr. Rehak began to write on the bench while Mr. Jekschtat blocked him with his body so he could not be seen,” an arrest report states.
All of the men then left the area before they were tracked down to the Colony Hotel. Police saw them leaving and “quickly detained them.”
The group was taken to the Miami Beach Police Station to be interviewed, where Rehak allegedly confessed and said he wrote on the bench “as a joke.” He also allowed police to view his phone, where photos of the graffiti were found, police said.
Jekschtat, meanwhile, allegedly confessed to being aware that Rehak had written the antisemitic graffiti and purposely blocked him “to defend his friend,” according to an arrest report.
“He also apologized for lying” and “explained to the officers that he did not known why Mr. Rehak wrote that specific remark he believed he did it as a joke,” the report states.
In Florida, crimes are subject to increased penalties if there’s evidence of certain prejudice. These are known as hate crimes.
“Upon being further interviewed, Mr. Rehak did not show intent of the remark as being a hate crime,” an arrest report states. Further details were not immediately available.
Rehak and Jekschtat were arrested and charged with criminal mischief of more than $200 and less than $1,000.
MIAMI BEACH, Fla. — The 2026 FIFA World Cup is coming to South Florida.
On Monday, the grand opening of the official World Cup Store in Miami Beach was held.
Representatives from FIFA joined Miami Beach city officials, and reps from the Miami Host Committee were also there for the ribbon-cutting event.
Local 10’s Kacy Hintz joined the fun, and her full report can be seen at the top of this page.
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The Miami Hurricanes have become a pain for the Oregon Ducks on the recruiting trail as of late. Former Oregon coach Mario Cristobal’s Hurricanes have stolen another recruit from Dan Lanning’s Ducks as both teams enter the 2026 college football season as national championship contenders.
2027 four-star cornerback Ai’King Hall, originally a Ducks commit, flipped his commitment to Miami on Sunday afternoon. Hall is rated as the No. 73 overall player nationally and the No. 9-ranked cornerback, per 247Sports. Hall was committed to the Ducks since April 6 before flipping his commitment to the Hurricanes.
In addition to flipping Hall, Miami also poached former Georgia five-star cornerback Donte Wright, whom the Ducks were pushing hard to flip. Wright committed to Miami over Oregon on May 9 and is a big loss for the Ducks, even more so than Hall, as he is among the top-ranked players in the 2027 recruiting class.
Per 247Sports, Wright is ranked as the No. 9 overall player nationally in the 2027 class and No. 1 in California. Wright is expected to be a key contributor on defense and for Cristobal’s effort to lead Miami to their first national championship since 2001.
This past season, the Hurricanes fell 27-21 to the Indiana Hoosiers in the national championship. Despite the loss, Miami is expected to be one of the top college football contenders in the future, along with Oregon.
While this pair of recruits won’t arrive in South Beach until the 2027 season, Miami and Oregon could very well face off in this year’s national championship at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada.
With the losses of both Hall and Wright from Oregon’s 2027 recruiting class, the Ducks now have one cornerback commit for the 2027 cycle, four-star cornerback Josiah Molden, a native of nearby West Linn, Oregon.
Molden has the potential to be a top future talent for the Ducks’ secondary as he is ranked the No. 27 overall cornerback and the No. 1 player in Oregon, per 247Sports. Following the two losses, Oregon’s 2027 recruiting ranking remains inside the top 10, despite Lanning not having a five-star commit for the cycle.
Having both Hall and Wright in Oregon’s secondary would’ve been massive for Oregon’s defense, but for now, Lanning will have to work with what he has, while continuing to pursue other top recruits.
With the loss of Hall, Oregon’s 2027 recruiting ranking dropped slightly to No. 10 overall, per On3 and 247Sports. Before Hall decided to flip his commitment to Miami, the Ducks’ 2027 recruiting ranking was No. 9 overall, per On3 and No. 7 per 247Sports.
Despite the losses, there is still plenty of time for Oregon to improve its 2027 recruiting class ranking, the main focus for the Ducks as of now, with the return of star quarterback Dante Moore, is winning the team’s first national championship in program history.
This is an accomplishment that Oregon fans are desperate for, as Lanning has made an all-out effort for the Ducks to achieve that goal as they enter what some see as a national championship or bust 2026 season.
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