Miami City Commissioner Manolo Reyes dies at 80
Miami City Commissioner Manolo Reyes, who dedicated his life to public service, has died at age 80.
'It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Miami City Commissioner for District 4 Manolo Reyes,' his family said in a statement Friday.
The family did not provide further details. Earlier this week, Reyes was hospitalized due to a decline in health. He has faced health issues in recent years, including battling cancer.
Reyes had a nontraditional path to elected office, winning his first election in 2017 at the age of 73 after six unsuccessful attempts dating back to 1985.
Reyes was born in 1944 in Cuba in a town called Victoria de las Tunas, now known as Las Tunas. His father, Ernesto Reyes Payes, was mayor of the town from 1952 until 1959, when Fidel Castro seized power. That year, Reyes — then a teenager — came with his family to the U.S. seeking refuge from the Castro regime.
In 1977, Reyes went on to graduate from the University of Florida, where he studied economics. After that, he landed a job at the city of Miami as a budget analyst.
An economist by trade, Reyes served as the principal economic analyst for the Overtown Park West Redevelopment Project and later was a principal budget analyst for Miami-Dade County Public Schools. He also taught at Westland Hialeah Senior High School.
In an interview with the Miami Herald in May, Reyes said public office was something he considered to be a 'vocation.'
'If you get into government, you get power to serve, and many people forget about this,' Reyes said. 'You don't obtain power to serve yourself. The people give you power to serve them.'
The commissioner began facing health problems not long after his first election in 2017. He went into remission in 2019 following an earlier battle with cancer. Then in September 2023, amid his reelection campaign, Reyes was diagnosed with leukemia.
But by February 2024, Reyes announced that his cancer was in remission. In May, he celebrated his 80th birthday at City Hall, telling the crowd: 'It's like I was born again.'
With three wins under his belt, Reyes appeared poised for his next chapter in Miami politics. He announced in May that he planned to run for mayor of Miami in 2025, 'God willing.'
But the commissioner's health began to decline in subsequent months, causing Reyes to miss City Commission meetings. He was about halfway through his term at the time of his death.
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