Miami voters on Tuesday elected Eileen Higgins as the city’s next mayor, ending nearly three decades of Republican control and marking a rare Democratic breakthrough in one of Florida’s most politically watched cities. Higgins, a county commissioner, defeated former city manager Emilio González by roughly 59 percent to 41 percent, according to preliminary results.

Miami had not elected a Democrat to the post since 1997, and the runoff, the city’s first since 2001, drew an unusual level of national attention for a formally nonpartisan contest. Higgins also became the first ever woman to be elected mayor of Miami.

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Higgins framed the result as a response to both local concerns and a broader frustration and fear with political rhetoric in the country. “We are facing rhetoric from el

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