Longtime incumbent Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle and criminal and civil rights attorney Melba Pearson are both hoping to hold one of the largest offices of its kind in the country, but only one can prevail Aug. 18. Here's why each Democratic candidate says she deserves a vote. Responses have been edited for style and content.

Related: 2020 South Florida Elections: Use this Voter Guide to Learn More About Candidates Running for Judge

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Katherine Fernandez Rundle

Fernandez Rundle has served as state attorney since 1993 and has been reelected six times.

Why are you running for this position?

It's truly an honor to serve as your state attorney and lead a dedicated team of public servants who share in my commitment and promise to a fair justice system. Our office, one of the largest in the country, is often looked upon as a national leader in the administration of justice and it is my sincere hope that our community will continue to support our efforts. Our commitment to prosecuting human traffickers to accountability efforts to ensure the public has faith and trust in their government continue to be a priorities for our office. I am running for state attorney because my love for our community, since my childhood, runs deep, and I am more committed than ever to delivering a fair and equal justice system for our community.

What about your experience qualifies you for the position?

I believe my lifetime of service in the State Attorney's Office, including serving the last two decades as the state attorney has given me the leadership and executive experience required to continue to serve our diverse and complex county as its state attorney.

What's your biggest achievement so far?

I am proud of all the important reforms our office continues to spearhead. Through smart justice initiatives and crucial community partnerships, our neighborhoods are a safer place in which to live, work and raise our families. Today, we continue to aggressively prosecute violent career criminals, and those who exploit our children and our most vulnerable. Establishing our one-of-its-kind human trafficking center is one of our most recent examples.

What would a successful term look like for you?

Now, in our history, is the ripe moment for the movement towards reforms to correct the social and systemic injustices that exist. I believe I have the leadership and experience to bring together other leaders and voices in housing, policing, civic engagement, health care, business, policymaking and the justice system. I am committed more than ever to seize this moment for important dialogue, conversations and needed reforms and actions to ensure that our criminal justice system delivers on the promise by which our nation was founded on — life, liberty and justice for all!

What is the most important issue facing your county at the moment?

Improved police and community relations need to be a priority for all of us. As state attorney, I've always been committed to making sure my office listens to our community and elevates diverse voices. During this time of peaceful protesting and calls for reforms, I join our residents in their calls for reforms consistent with our commitment to smart, equal and fair justice. For example, I reiterated my support for a Miami-Dade Independent Review Panel when I appeared before the Board of County Commissioners last week [this response was written the week of June 22].

An active, inclusive and fully-funded IRP would help bring our community together to engage in the difficult work of restoring peace and ensuring the protection of citizens. An IRP would inspire trust and change by promoting transparency and allowing citizens to air their grievances and to hold the police departments accountable.

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Melba Pearson

Pearson is deputy director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida and a former prosecutor at the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office.

Why are you running for this position?

I am running because I am committed to implementing reforms that reduce racial disparities and safely reduce the number of incarcerated people. For instance, I plan on ending the use of cash bail for all misdemeanors and nonviolent felonies. Additionally, I am committed to ending the direct filing of juveniles into the adult court system. Many reforms will focus on identifying the root cause of the crime, such as mental illness, homelessness or substance abuse, and helping those offenders rehabilitate and stay out of the criminal justice system.

Last, I am running because the current state attorney has opposed modest reforms to cash bail, repeatedly failed to hold corrupt law enforcement accountable and taken an overall anti-reform approach over her 27 years as state attorney. I want to help create a local criminal justice system that prioritizes rehabilitation over punishment and focuses on the most dangerous offenders.

What about your experience qualifies you for the position?

I served as an assistant state attorney in Miami-Dade County for close to 16 years. In the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office, I worked as a line attorney in the misdemeanor domestic violence division, a prosecutor in the felony domestic crimes unit and a community prosecutor. I ended my tenure as assistant chief of the career criminal/robbery unit. As assistant chief, I supervised junior attorneys and prosecuted homicide cases. This gave me the institutional knowledge of the office that is crucial for effective management.

In 2017, I left the state attorney's office to join the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida as deputy director. I worked to change police practices, expand voting rights and reform the criminal justice system. I advocated on a local and statewide level to eliminate racial disparities in the criminal justice system and safely reduce the number of incarcerated Floridians. This allowed me to continue to develop my managerial skills while also becoming an expert on the nation's leading criminal justice, poling and racial justice reforms. My experience at the ACLU of Florida prepared me for this position by making me an expert on progressive reforms that can make our communities safer, reduce crime and reduce incarceration all at the same time.

What's your biggest achievement so far?

In my position as deputy director at the ACLU of Florida, I was among the leadership team that passed the Voting Restoration Amendment (Amendment Four) in 2018. After working more than a year to pass the amendment successfully, I witnessed returning citizens register to vote for the first time. The Voting Restoration Amendment was the largest expansion of voting rights since the 1960s — I am so proud to have been a part of the movement and campaign.

What would a successful term look like for you?

A successful term would include: a 30% reduction in the local jail population; a 10% drop in violent crime from 2020 levels; a 500% increase in funding for rehabilitative services and programming; Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office has a diverse leadership team that reflects truly Miami-Dade's community; restructuring the office to be more nimble, effective and able to tackle the challenges of 21st-century prosecution.

What is the most important issue facing your county at the moment?

Miami-Dade faces many dire emergencies right now — such as climate change, economic inequality and a mass incarceration crisis. Due to the state attorney's role, I will focus on Miami-Dade's mass incarceration crisis. On any given day, about 4,500 people are incarcerated and supervised in a Miami-Dade jail. A commentary of over-punitive laws, aggressive police and "tough on crime" prosecutors and judges has left Miami-Dade with a mass incarceration crisis.

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