And then there was one...officially

The first endorsement is out in the Hialeah mayor's race -- which is becoming more contentious (read: interesting) by the day -- and the firefighter union's pick of former mayor Raul Martinez is both surprising and expected.

It may surprise those who remember Martinez's reign and hostile "If-you-don't-like-it-here-go work-at-the-city-of-Miami" rapport with the firefighters that the fire union would recommend their former foe. It is likely expected by some watching Hialeah politics more closely. Not only were Martinez and his slate mates allies during the hard-fought county mayoral campaign against former mayor Julio Robaina, where the firefighters used their flex to help Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez, the man who held the position for more than two decades is seen as a financial guru who can pull the city out of an alleged fiscal emergency that the current administration won't address or disclose.

In the end, union President Mario Pico -- who has been battling the city through tenuous negotiations without having a clear picture of the city's fiscal standing -- urged his membership to forget the history and concentrate on the future financial recovery of the city. "When it is all said and done if this city does not float we all drown," he said.

To be fair, the firefighters invited all four candidates to the screening by a political committee comprised of some of the executive board. But acting alcaldito Carlos Hernandez declined. Pico said Hernandez told him he had something else to do, more or less. My words. I think he told Pico something like, "If you haven't heard, I'm running a campaign." To which Ladra would have replied, "If you haven't heard, you are wasting your time and Jesus Navarro's money." But Pico is polite and diplomatic. Ladra is less so.

And then there were three. But George "Who?" Castro, who hasn't raised any money and doesn't stand a chance, was taken off the table of consideration quickly enough. He isn't, er, ready.

And then there were two. And then there were two for hours and hours. And then there were two for days. But, really, there were two from the very beginning. Firefighters were as ABC (read: Anyone But Carlos) as Ladra and were only going to consider Martinez and former State Sen. Rudy Garcia, who I hear impressed the screening committee with his speech. But grandeur thoughts of industrial trail lines across Hialeah and a planned hub of recycling industry businesses take years to materialize, let alone make an impact, said one firefighter. "We need someone to take care of what's going on right now." Garcia's words also seemed rehearsed and practiced next to the unpolished, less-stellar interview with Martinez, who said things that started with, "You might not like my answer," and "I'm not going to lie to you or mince words..." He came off as "rough around the edges," as one firefighter said, and rubbed some guys the wrong way when he defended his hardline past by justifying that while he never gave them raises, he also did not take their pay or benefits away. But one has to remember that the audience is a group of firefighter paramedics who have repeatedly won legal orders against the city for unfair labor practices and who are now threatened with up to 25 firings this October and more later this year. Union leaders say Martinez did not sound practiced. "I don't need a friend at City Hall," said union Vice President Eric Johnson, who is also founder and president of the Raul Martinez fan club at the union. "I need a financial manager to fix things so that I can take care of my wife and children and their future is secure."

To be sure, there were unpaid boosters lobbying on behalf of both candidates inside the union. And that is why the group deviated from its regular process to take two votes and make sure that the board's decision would represent the membership and could not be challenged as hurried or biased. The first vote of the screening committee (between 40 and 50 people) was reportedly so lopsided, that the union decided to take another vote at the general union membership meeting later that night. Again, it was reportedly overwhelmingly pro-Martinez. Pico went to further lengths, visiting stations over the weekend to make sure that the decision would represent a unified stand from the majority of the 271 firefighters. He announced the decision Tuesday.

"This is the most important city election that this union membership has ever voted on," Pico told Ladra. In his note to the members, he told them that Martinez edged out Garcia on his knowledge and experience with city finances. But he acknowledged it was a difficult decision. "He has the reputation of being a great financial administrator. He has guided the city through difficult financial times, not once but twice. He also has the reputation of being hard at negotiations," Pico wrote adding that the past "is not important right now. What matters now is the one constant focus Mayor Raul Martinez has always had, and that is the prosperity of the city." The email went out after Pico spoke personally with both candidates and delivered a letter and a check for $500 from the union PAC to Martinez.

But everybody already kinda knew. Like Ladra said, they got people on the inside. Garcia and his people had been downplaying the importance of the endorsement since Saturday. "It's sad that after what they heard from me and told me how great I did and what a great job I would do, that's the result they have," Garcia said, quickly cutting off as he walked and knocked on doors Tuesday evening. While Martinez said he "never expected anything" from the union, Ladra knows he was surprised the nod for him didn't come sooner. "I'm very appreciative of their confidence," he told me. But he will value their sweat even more as he expects the firefighters to help his campaign as they did on the successful county mayoral campaign for Gimenez.

"The firefighters have always been the toughest, hardest-working in any campaign for or against -- and I have been on both sides of that," Martinez told Ladra late Tuesday, completely aware that he was maybe a bitter pill to swallow.

"It's not about me," Martinez said. "It's about the future of the city of Hialeah."