The Nation - News from Aug. 14, 1985

Miami voters rejected by a 2-1 margin a proposal to transfer daily government responsibility from the city manager to a strong mayor. Officials said another proposal, to hold partisan mayoral elections, was also losing by a 2-1 margin in a light voter turnout, which was running even less than the predicted 15%. The strong-mayor proposal, which one black leader called an attempted power grab by Puerto Rican-born Mayor Maurice Ferre, would establish the office as independent of the City Commission. The mayor and commissioners now have equal authority.