Government of Miami-Dade County

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The government of Miami-Dade County is defined and authorized under the Constitution of Florida, Florida law, and the Home Rule Charter of Miami-Dade County.^[1]

Since its formation in 1957, Miami-Dade County, Florida has had a two-tier system of government. Under this system, Miami-Dade comprises a large unincorporated area and 34 incorporated areas or municipalities. Each municipality has its own government and provides such city-type services as police and zoning protection.

In 2018, a state constitutional amendment was passed that made the positions of County tax collector, property appraiser, supervisor of elections, and sheriff independent elected offices.^[2][3]

Of the county's 2,751,796 total residents (as of 2017),^[4] approximately 44% live in unincorporated areas, the majority of which are heavily urbanized. These residents are part of the Unincorporated Municipal Services Area (UMSA). For these residents, the County fills the role of both lower- and upper-tier government, the County Commission acting as their lower-tier municipal representative body. Residents within UMSA pay an UMSA tax, equivalent to a city tax, which is used to provide County residents with equivalent city services (police, fire, zoning, water and sewer, etc.). Residents of incorporated areas do not pay UMSA tax.

An Executive Mayor and the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners (BCC) govern the County. The County's main administrative offices are located in the Stephen P. Clark Center (SPCC) at 111 NW 1ST Street in downtown Miami.

The Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners is the governing body of unincorporated Miami-Dade County and has broad regional powers to establish policies for Miami-Dade County services. The government provides major metropolitan services countywide and city-type services for residents of unincorporated areas.^[5]

One County Commissioner is elected from each of Miami-Dade County's 13 districts to serve a four-year term. Residents choose only from among candidates running in the district in which they live. Commissioners are chosen in non-partisan, single-district elections and can serve two four-year staggered terms, with elections scheduled every two years. The Commissioners elect a Chairperson, and the Chairperson appoints the members, chairperson and vice chairperson of all standing committees.^[5]

In November 2012, the Miami-Dade County Term Limit Amendment was approved, modifying the County charter to establish term limits of two consecutive four-year terms.^[6]

These were the incoming board members as of December 7, 2022:^[7]

District	Commissioner	First Elected	Notes
1st	Oliver Gilbert	2020
2nd	Marleine Bastien	2022
3rd	Keon Hardemon	2020
4th	Micky Steinberg	2022
5th	Eileen Higgins	2018
6th	Kevin Marino Cabrera	2022
7th	Raquel Regalado	2020
8th	Danielle Cohen Higgins	2022	2020 *appointed*
9th	Kionne McGhee	2020
10th	Anthony Rodriguez	2022
11th	Roberto Gonzalez		2022 *appointed*
12th	Juan Carlos Bermudez	2022
13th	René García	2020
Chair	Oliver Gilbert	2022
Vice Chair	Anthony Rodriguez	2022

In addition to the county commission, there are several elected "constitutional officers" that form the Government of Miami-Dade County that are required by the Florida Constitution and Florida law and authorized under the Charter.

The mayor is an independently elected county executive. The incumbent mayor of Miami-Dade County is Democrat Daniella Levine Cava (2020–present)

Florida sheriffs are vested with wide-ranging constitutional powers as both county officers and a part of the state judicial branch.^[8] The incumbent sheriff of Miami-Dade County is Republican Rosie Cordero-Stutz (2025–present)

The state attorney is a state and county official, serving as both the chief prosecutor of the state circuit court and county court. The incumbent state attorney for Miami-Dade County is Democrat Katherine Fernandez Rundle (1993–present)

The clerk of court is a state and county official, serving as both the clerk of the state circuit court and county court. The Clerk also functions as the ex-officio county comptroller, county auditor, county recorder, and clerk to the board of county commissioners. The incumbent Miami-Dade County clerk of court is Republican Juan Fernandez-Barquin (2023–present)

The public defender is a state and county official, representing county residents in both the state circuit court and county court. The incumbent public defender of Miami-Dade County is Democrat Carlos J. Martinez (2009–present)^[9]

The incumbent property appraiser of Miami-Dade County is Republican Tomás Regalado (2025–present)

The incumbent Miami-Dade County supervisor of elections is Republican Alina Garcia (2025–present)

The tax collector is charged with collecting county and state taxes in addition to its role as head of the county DMV. The incumbent tax collector of Miami-Dade County is Republican Dariel Fernandez (2025–present)

• Miami-Dade Transit oversees the largest transit system in Florida, operating the Metrorail, Metromover, and Metrobus.
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Animal Services
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Audit and Management Services
• The Miami-Dade Aviation Department (Miami International Airport)
• The Miami-Dade County Communications Department
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Community Action and Human Services
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Elections
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Finance
• The Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Department (MDFR)
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Human Resources
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Information Technology
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Internal Services
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Juvenile Services
• The Miami-Dade Public Library System
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Management and Budget
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Medical Examiner
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces Department. Miami-Dade County Parks is the third largest county park system in the United States, consisting of 270 parks and 13,573 acres of land.^[10]
• The Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office (MDSO)
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Public Housing and Community Development (PHCD)
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Regulatory and Economic Resources
• The PortMiami
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Solid Waste Management
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTPW)
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Vizcaya Trust (Vizcaya Museum and Gardens)
• The Miami-Dade County Department of Water and Sewer
• Jackson Health System (Public Health Trust of Miami-Dade County)

• Government of Miami
• Government of Florida

• Miami-Dade County Government, Official Website
• Miami-Dade County Office of the Mayor
• Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners
• Miami-Dade County Attorney's Office
• Miami-Dade County Clerk of the Courts Office
• Miami-Dade County Office of the Property Appraiser
• Miami-Dade County Office of the Inspector General
• Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics and Public Trust