Coral Gables voters to pick mayor and decide whether to extend term from 2 to 4 years in November

Coral Gables voters will select a mayor this November while deciding on a ballot measure that could extend the mayor's term from two years to four.

If approved, the measure would increase the mayoral term to four years, starting with the 2028 election. Because of that timeline, whoever wins the mayoral seat this November will still serve a traditional two-year term.

Mayor Vince Lago, who is running for re-election, favors the change, noting that Coral Gables city commissioners already serve four-year terms.

"If you're running every two years, it's very difficult, and it takes your eye off the ball sometimes," Lago said. "That job should be to lead and to do the will of the residents of the city of Coral Gables—not to be caught up in a campaign every two years, which is an ongoing cycle."

Voters in the city remain divided on whether a longer term encourages effective governance or limits public accountability.

Margaret Meeks, a Coral Gables resident, supports extending the term, arguing that two years is insufficient for elected officials to complete major initiatives.

"I think it's hard to get anything done in two years. You get something started, and then you're gone," Meeks said. "You can't do anything in two years; it's just too short."

Conversely, Rhonda McNeil, who has lived and voted in Coral Gables for four decades, has already cast her vote by mail to keep the two-year term.

"It makes them more accountable to what they're gonna do. If you give them four years, sometimes they won't do it right away," McNeil said. "I wanna see people be more accountable right away."

Coral Gables currently uses two-year mayoral terms, as do nearby municipalities like Miami Beach and North Miami. Larger South Florida cities, including Miami, Miami Gardens, and Hialeah, operate with four-year mayoral terms.