Hialeah Mayor Advocates for Appointment of Former Councilman Luis Gonzalez
Hialeah Mayor Bryan Calvo is moving to appoint former Councilman Luis González to fill the legislative seat left vacant by Jesus Tundidor. Tundidor resigned from the council last year to launch a mayoral bid against Calvo. If the appointment is successful, González will reclaim the specific seat he lost to Tundidor during the 2019 elections, marking a return to the dais where he previously served from 2005 to 2017.
Critics of the move point out the potential conflict between Calvo’s anti-establishment campaign platform and his selection of González, a veteran politician who served under the administrations of former mayors Julio Robaina and Carlos Hernandez. Additionally, objections have been raised regarding the appointment of a candidate whom voters explicitly rejected in favor of Tundidor in the 2019 election cycle. However, proponents argue that the council, which has recently skewed younger and politically divided, requires the institutional knowledge and stability González would bring.
Mayor Calvo previously stated he delayed filling the vacancy until the conclusion of the federal case against former Councilwoman Angelica Pacheco. Following Pacheco’s guilty plea regarding pandemic loan fraud earlier this week, Calvo announced it was time to move forward. González has expressed a desire to return to public service to help stabilize the city’s finances and support the new administration. If appointed, he will hold the seat until the regularly scheduled election in November 2026.
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