The Miami City Commission has approved a controversial plan to postpone upcoming municipal elections — a move that has now been signed into law by the city's mayor, despite warnings from Gov. Ron DeSantis and State Attorney General James Uthmeier.

According to the Miami Herald, the decision pushes city elections back to November 2026 to align with the federal election cycle. As a result, the current mayor and two city commissioners will remain in office for an extended period.

At least one candidate who would have been on the November 2025 ballot has filed a lawsuit against the move. Emilio González, former Miami city manager and mayoral candidate,  sued the city and pointed out how the change effectively keeps the sitting mayor and two commissioners in office longer than might have been the case had they lost in the originally scheduled November election.

"The commissioners unconstitutionally bypassed the democratic will of the people in a way that the Florida Constitution, the Miami-Dade Charter, and the City's Charter expressly prohibit," the lawsuit charges. "Reminiscent of regimes in Venezuela, Nicaragua, Bolivia, or Cuba - the very places so many of Miami's people come from - those in power, while in power, forced upon those voters what they think is best for elections going forward - and secured for themselves additional time in power, without a vote of the electorate. That cannot stand."

DeSantis also disagreed with the change in the election date. He posted, "It is wrong for incumbent politicians to cancel elections and unilaterally extend their terms in office. It also runs afoul of term limits."

Uthmeier posted a letter he had sent to the city demanding the vote delay be reversed. "Home to thousands of patriotic Cuban Americans who know better than most about regimes that cavalierly delay elections and prolong their terms in power, the City of Miami owes to its citizens what the law requires."

City leaders believed they were within their rights to delay the election, saying it would make things easier if the voting was scheduled at the same time as state and federal elections while increasing voter participation, and saving the city as much as $1 million each election, according to The Washington Post.

• Influencers Shun Musk's New 'America Party'
• Independence Day Poll: Just Half of Dems Patriotic