Miami-Dade Election Dispute: Candidate Sues to Remove Supervisor

Eliott Rodriguez filed a federal lawsuit on Friday seeking to remove Alina Garcia from the board overseeing the Congressional District 27 recount. The suit asks a judge to force the Miami-Dade Supervisor of Elections to step down, alleging that her family connections to the opposing candidate, Maria Elvira Salazar, create a conflict of interest.

The race is heading toward a recount as the margin between the two candidates stands at 1,090 votes following the initial count. Florida law mandates an automatic recount when the difference in vote share is less than 0.5 percent. Garcia serves on the three-person canvassing board responsible for reviewing ballots and tabulating final results. If the board confirms the race is too close to call, a recount will proceed on Saturday, November 7.

Rodriguez’s campaign argues that Garcia’s daughter, Alyn Fernandez, works at the same law firm as her husband, Robert Fernandez. Robert Fernandez is the attorney representing Salazar. Alyn Fernandez attended the canvassing board meeting on Friday, signing an attendance sheet on behalf of RHF Law Firm. Rodriguez’s team contends that this attendance indicates she was present on behalf of the firm, although the firm has denied that claim.

Garcia’s office rejected the request for recusal. Spokesperson Juan Mendieta stated that Garcia is not recusing herself because the board’s work is not a judicial proceeding. He noted that Alyn Fernandez attended the hearing as a member of the public. The complaint filed by Rodriguez’s attorneys includes a photo from Salazar’s Facebook page showing her embracing Garcia, which they cite as evidence of a close relationship between the supervisor and the Republican candidate.

Election attorney Juan-Carlos Planas, who represents Rodriguez in the lawsuit, previously ran against Garcia for the Supervisor of Elections position in 2024. The Miami-Dade Democratic Party had previously requested that Garcia step aside after she publicly supported Florida’s Amendment 3 property tax cut proposal. Garcia maintained at that time that no conflict existed, a position she continues to hold in the current dispute.

The canvassing board’s primary function is to review ballots for signature issues and other improprieties. The outcome of the board’s review will determine whether the 1,090-vote gap triggers the statutory recount. Rodriguez’s legal team describes the situation as an objective conflict between Garcia’s duty to act impartially and her family’s professional ties to one of the candidates.