Porras Holds Narrow Lead in Doral Council Race
A manual recount confirmed Maureen Porras's 12-vote victory over Fernanda Gomes for Doral City Council Seat 2.
Updated on Nov. 7, 2026 in Elections
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Maureen Porras won Doral City Council Seat 2 by 12 votes after a manual recount upheld her lead, with 9,596 votes to Fernanda Gomes's 9,584. Supervisor of Elections Alina Garcia announced the results after the recount was completed on Saturday.
Why it matters
The race stayed exceptionally close after Tuesday's election, which triggered a recount under Florida law. The narrow result confirms the outcome for Doral voters choosing their council representative.
The recount produced 9,596 votes for Porras and 9,584 for Gomes, a 12-vote margin narrower than the 16-vote lead she held on Wednesday. The source does not indicate whether further challenges are planned.
The players
Alina Garcia
Alina Garcia is the Miami-Dade County Supervisor of Elections who announced the recount results.
Maureen Porras
Maureen Porras is a Doral City Council candidate who won Seat 2 by 12 votes after the manual recount.
Fernanda Gomes
Fernanda Gomes is the challenger who finished 12 votes behind Porras in the Doral City Council Seat 2 race.
The details
Doral held its city council election on Tuesday, and the Seat 2 contest finished within a margin that triggered an automatic manual recount under Florida law. Miami-Dade Supervisor of Elections Alina Garcia announced on Saturday that the recount had confirmed Porras as the winner.
Timeline
Tuesday: Doral City Council Seat 2 election held.
Wednesday: Porras led Gomes by 16 votes before the recount.
Saturday: Recount completed and results announced.
Political Context
Florida law requires an automatic manual recount when a race margin falls within a set threshold, a process applied here to a municipal council contest. Such recounts are a routine mechanism for resolving close local elections without a separate legal challenge.
Doral voters now have a confirmed council representative for Seat 2 after the recount. The result is final pending any further challenges, which could affect who takes office.
The takeaway
Close local elections can be decided by very small margins, and automatic recounts provide a check on the initial count. Voters can track certification and results through their county supervisor of elections.
Further reading
Explore more Elections coverage for local races like this one in Doral.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Miami Herald.
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