Meet James Reyes, one of the candidates running for Miami-Dade Sheriff, a first in decades

MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. (WSVN) – For the first time in nearly 60 years, Miami-Dade voters have the chance to decide the next county sheriff.

7News spoke with one contender, who said he is the history making candidate Miami-Dade voters should choose as the county is set to return to the elected sheriff model after 58 years.

James Reyes was born in Cuba and came to Miami-Dade as a child.

Until his appointment as Miami-Dade’s Chief of Public Safety, he spent the majority of his law enforcement career in Broward County.

“I worked for over 23 years with the Broward Sheriff’s Office, so retiring from the Broward Sheriff’s Office from a sheriff’s office model and now being the Chief of Public Safety under this county government model, for me, is a contributing factor into why I’m doing it,” said Reyes.

He was endorsed by fellow Democrat, Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, but he promises to be an independent voice.

“We look forward to building on that support and gaining more support and building on that coalition that’s bipartisan and goes way beyond just the primary voters,” said Reyes.

Reyes’ first priority, the safety of the community and the soon-to-be deputies on the streets.

“We fight hard to give our officers the resources they need to do their job more effectively and efficiently and the most important part to get them home safely to their families day in and day out,” he said.

Reyes said managing such a huge budget is an integral part of the job.

“One of the critical elements of those responsibilities was its $1.2 billion budget. Something that under the model here in county government, our other candidates are not used to or haven’t had the opportunity to manage that size of budget,” he said.

He said he’s the only candidate with executive leadership experience in a South Florida sheriff’s office, something that he believes sets him apart from the rest and makes him the perfect person to lead the transition in Miami-Dade County.

“Obviously having that executive leadership experience in a sheriff’s office and now in this county government model will help me transition from one to the other without having negative impact on service to our community,” said Reyes.

Early voting is now open across Miami-Dade and Broward until Nov. 3.

7News will have a look at Reye’s opponent on Thursday.