A West Palm Beach anchor who has delivered the news to South Florida residents for more than three decades is hanging up her microphone, trading four nightly newscasts for a new life closer to her children and future grandchildren.
Liz Quirantes, 60, announced her retirement from CBS12 this week, with her final broadcast scheduled for May 29, 2026. The station has described her as “one of the defining voices” since she first joined as a weekend reporter in 1991.
The anchor’s departure was announced April 27, though unlike many recent exits from CBS News properties, this one stems from family considerations rather than corporate restructuring.
Following Family To Oklahoma
Her two adult children have both relocated to Oklahoma, and the possibility of becoming a grandmother sealed her decision to leave Florida.
“What really solidified my decision was when my children started talking about starting their own families. That’s kind of like, OK, they’re not coming back to Florida,” she said. “They’re in Oklahoma, and they’re doing very well, so mom and dad need to go there.”
Quirantes and her husband will move west after her May 29 sign-off, leaving behind the communities from West Palm Beach to Mangonia Park where she became a household name across four daily news programs — the 5 p.m., 5:30 p.m., 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. broadcasts.
Never Planned To Stay This Long
When she arrived at CBS12 in 1991, it was only her second job after college, following a stint at a cable news station in Miami. She and her husband didn’t even unload their Miami house, convinced the position would be temporary.
“I didn’t even sell our home in Miami because we intended to go back to Miami and I would apply to a broadcast station there,” she told CBS12.
But the temporary gig became permanent. One year in, she was on the ground in Homestead covering the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew in August 1992. Over the following decades, she reported on the September 11 attacks, countless hurricanes, elections and the tragedies that shaped South Florida.
Her work brought home two Suncoast Regional Emmy Awards — one for covering the 2018 Parkland school shooting and another for her reporting from the Bahamas following the destruction left by Hurricane Dorian in 2019.
Exiting During Network Turmoil
While Quirantes insists her retirement is entirely personal, the timing places her among a long roster of CBS News figures who have left in recent months. Since editor-in-chief Bari Weiss assumed her role in October 2025, the network has endured multiple rounds of layoffs and organizational changes.
The August 2025 merger between Paramount Global and Skydance Media set off financial pressures that led to buyouts, departures and high-profile resignations throughout the news division. Maurice DuBois and John Dickerson both left their CBS Evening News co-anchor positions in December 2025 during the upheaval, with former CBS Mornings host Tony Dokoupil stepping in as their replacement. Gayle King, host of CBS Mornings, reportedly agreed to a significant salary reduction when renegotiating her contract.
But Quirantes made clear that her decision was independent of network pressures or financial incentives — it was dictated by where her family will be and what the next chapter holds.
Saying Goodbye After 35 Years
Viewers who have watched Quirantes for decades reacted swiftly to the news, flooding social media with tributes calling her “a true local legend” and expressing sadness that her familiar presence would vanish from their screens.
She told The Daily Beast she wants viewers to remember her as “a devoted mom, a devoted wife, a good Christian, and an excellent journalist.”
“It’s going to be hard to say goodbye to the viewers, to the staff, and to my life here. I’m going to miss this,” she said.
Her career spanned the transformation of local news from analog to digital, survived the consolidation of broadcast media, and outlasted multiple ownership changes at the parent network. After May 29, the anchor desk she occupied for years will need a new occupant, though CBS12 has not indicated who that might be.
What comes next for Quirantes involves no teleprompter, no late-night deadlines at 11 p.m., and a much quieter beat under an Oklahoma sky — one where the most important stories will involve grandchildren rather than hurricanes.