Voters in North Miami Beach headed to the polls Tuesday to decide on a new mayor, months after the former mayor was arrested and removed from office.
With all precincts reporting, Evan Piper was the apparent winner with about 57% of the vote compared to just under 43% for Paule Villard.
Piper, 59, is a lifelong North Miami Beach resident, president of the chamber of commerce, and a longtime member of the city's planning and zoning board.
"One of the biggest issues that North Miami Beach is facing as a city is there’s too much divisiveness in the city," Piper said. "I do want people to realize that they can have trust in government and that is one thing that I bring to the table is to show that we can restore trust and trust our elected officials."
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Villard is a former North Miami Beach commissioner.
The city's former mayor, Anthony DeFillipo, was arrested back in May on illegal voting charges. He was suspended by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis days later.
DeFillipo, in an exclusive interview with NBC6 earlier this year, admitted to using an old address within city limits to vote, calling it an honest mistake.
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“It was an oversight and I had it fixed immediately when I noticed,” DeFillipo told NBC6.
But a complaint filed with the Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics & Public Trust accused DeFillipo of living in Davie. The North Miami Beach city charter requires elected officials to reside in the city.
Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said DeFillipo was living primarily at his Davie home when he voted in August, October and November 2022 for a district he was no longer legally qualified to vote in.
Location data tracking DeFillipo’s cellphone showed how he woke up on election day at his Davie property, traveled to vote in North Miami Beach, and then returned at night to his Davie property. The cellphone data showed DeFillipo slept most nights since in Davie after selling his longtime family home in North Miami Beach in 2021.
DeFillipo maintains he’s lived in the city since taking office. He has pleaded not guilty and his trial is set for next year.
