Dodgy Write-ins Close Four Universal Primaries: SAR

Candidates qualify for local elections; write-ins close 4 St. Johns County primaries
Posted: June 24, 2016 - 10:50pm | Updated: June 25, 2016 - 10:33am





By JAKE MARTIN
jake.martin@staugustine.com
Four St. Johns County races took a turn in the final days and hours of the qualifying period for this year’s elections when several write-in candidates declared their intention to run, thus closing their respective primaries to nearly half the county’s voters.

Vicky Oakes, St. Johns County Supervisor of Elections, told The Record this week the write-in candidates each qualified merely by filing four pieces of paperwork and have shut the affected primaries off to any county voters not registered as Republicans.

“Each winner’s name will appear on the ballot in the November election and there will also be a blank space,” Oakes said, explaining the implications for the closed primaries. “In order to cast your vote for a write-in candidate you’ll have to fill in the oval and write their name in.”

As of Friday, there were 166,852 active registered county voters, with 88,599 identifying as Republicans, 39,623 as Democrats and 38,630 as unaffiliated. The primary election is Aug. 30, with a registration and/or party change deadline of Aug. 1. The general election is Nov. 8, with a registration and/or party change deadline of Oct. 11.

Affected primaries are those for two St. Johns County Commission seats, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, and Sheriff.

St. Augustine resident Sheamus John McNeeley on Tuesday filed his bid as a write-in candidate for the District 3 seat on the County Commission.

He was followed up on Friday by fellow St. Augustine resident Alfred Buckner Pittman, who filed his write-in bid for the District 5 seat on the County Commission.

Commissioner Bill McClure in April announced his decision not to seek re-election to his District 3 seat, which represents the southeast part of St. Johns County. He opted instead to make a bid for Rep. Ander Crenshaw’s open District 4 seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Vying for McClure’s seat before McNeeley’s eleventh-hour entry were two Republican contenders, both of whom qualified: former St. Johns County assistant administrator Jerry Cameron and St. Augustine businessman Paul M. Waldron.

According to his Facebook page, McNeeley, 27, attended Pedro Menendez High School, studied political science at University of North Florida and clinical psychology at Daytona State College and, since 2007, has served in the infantry with the Florida Army National Guard.

In 2015, McNeeley was one of four Republicans who qualified for a vacant Florida House District 24 seat, but he withdrew from the race before that January’s special Republican primary.

McNeeley declined to comment Friday.

Commissioner Rachael Bennett on Feb. 29 withdrew from the race for her District 5 seat, which represents much of the St. Augustine area up to International Golf Parkway.

Challengers for her seat before Pittman’s last-minute entry were Dottie L. Acosta, a former top official at the St. Johns County Property Appraiser’s Office, and Henry Dean, former head of the St. Johns River Water Management District. Both Acosta and Dean filed as Republicans and have qualified. Nonparty candidate Jake T. Riley, a data analyst, and Republican Rose Bailey, a former bank vice president, have withdrawn from the race.

According to his financial disclosure form, Pittman’s net worth as of Dec. 15, 2015, exceeded $1 million, but he did not provide a primary source of income.

Pittman’s name comes up on the St. Johns County Republican Party’s website as a Century Club member, meaning he pays annual dues of $100 or more. He did not return a call for comment Friday.

Commissioner Jimmy Johns of District 1, representing much of the fast-growing northwest part of the county, will face fellow Republican Al Abbatiello. Johns, the incumbent, took over mid-term for former Commissioner Cyndi Stevenson and is seeking election to his first full term. A third, nonparty candidate, Merrill Paul Roland, withdrew from the race on June 17.

Oakes said that contest will be considered a universal primary — for lack of a write-in or non-Republican candidate — meaning it will appear on every county ballot and open to every county voter.

The annual salary for a County Commission seat is $70,338 plus benefits.

The primary contest for Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller between Republicans Hunter S. Conrad and George Lareau was closed with the Thursday addition of write-in Patrick Dewayne Mency of St. Johns County.

According to his financial disclosure form, Mency made $48,000 in 2015 as president of Jacksonville-based FUEL Media Holdings, which does outdoor advertising.

Mency declined to comment Friday.

Conrad, the incumbent, took over mid-term for former clerk Cheryl Strickland after being appointed to the post in October 2015 by Gov. Rick Scott. He is seeking election to his first full term. In the meantime, Lareau, who had served 32 years in the clerk’s office including 19 years as deputy chief clerk, was sworn in as the interim clerk the month prior to Conrad’s appointment.

The annual salary for Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller is $128,558 plus benefits.

The primary contest for Sheriff between former deputy Debra Maynard and incumbent David Shoar, both Republicans, was closed with the addition of two write-ins: St. Johns County resident Linda Marie Ziegler-Doran, who filed on Monday, and St. Augustine resident Andrew Hunter Tallman, who filed on Thursday.

Ziegler-Doran did not provide an income source on her financial disclosure form. She did not return a call for comment Friday.

According to his financial disclosure form, Tallman earned $1,100 a month in 2015 as a massage therapist at Andrew’s Healing Hands at 24 Louise St. in St. Augustine.

According to the Florida Department of Health, Tallman’s current license was issued Feb. 22 of this year and expires Aug. 31, 2017. A previous “null and void” license issued March 31, 2003, expired Aug. 31, 2011.

Tallman declined to comment Friday.

The annual salary for Sheriff is $137,497 plus benefits.

In the 2012 general election cycle, there was only one write-in candidate, Cynthia L. Schrake, who did not qualify for the County Commission District 1 seat that ultimately went to then-incumbent Stevenson. That contest, which was determined in the November general election, included Stevenson, fellow Republican Brian Iannucci and Roland, who ran as a nonparty candidate.

Oakes said write-in candidates neither have to pay a fee nor obtain petitions to qualify but only file paperwork with her office. In contrast, partisan and nonpartisan candidates must either post a certain percentage of the annual salary of the office they are seeking, or gather a certain percentage of valid petitions signed by registered voters in their respective districts, in order to get on the ballot.



Many races already decided

As for races where only one candidate qualified, Oakes said that candidate is considered unopposed and will therefore not be on the general election ballot. She said those races were effectively decided as of noon on Friday, the deadline for the qualifying period.

Five of the county’s 16 major races have thus already been decided. These include the races for Supervisor of Elections, in which incumbent Oakes ran unopposed; Property Appraiser, in which Eddie Creamer ran unopposed; and Tax Collector, in which incumbent Dennis W. Hollingsworth ran unopposed. Creamer will take over for Sharon Outland when she leaves in January.

County Judge Charles Tinlin of Group 1 and St. Johns County School Board Chairman Patrick Canan of District 5, will also remain in their respective offices.

At least 20 of the 41 other St. Johns County races — including those for seats on the Hastings Town Council, Airport Authority and Anastasia Mosquito Control District Board of Commissioners, as well as numerous community development districts — were decided as of Friday.



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Qualified Candidates

The following candidates have qualified for their respective office races:

Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller

Hunter S. Conrad, Republican

George Lareau, Republican

Patrick Dewayne Mency, write-in

Sheriff

Linda Marie Doran, write-in

Debra Maynard, Republican

David B. Shoar, Republican

Andrew H. Tallman, write-in

Property Appraiser*

Eddie Creamer, Republican

Tax Collector*

Dennis W. Hollingsworth, Republican

Supervisor of Elections*

Vicky Oakes, Republican

County Commission — District 1

Al Abbatiello, Republican

Jimmy Johns, Republican

County Commission — District 3

Jerry Cameron, Republican

Sheamus John McNeeley, write-in

Paul M. Waldron, Republican

County Commission — District 5

Dottie L. Acosta, Republican

Henry Dean, Republican

Alfred B. Pittman, write-in

County Judge — Group 2*

Charles J. Tinlin, N/A

School Board — District 2

Tommy Allen, N/A

John Reardon, N/A

School Board — District 5*

Patrick Canan, N/A

St. Augustine City Commission — Seat 1

Sandra Flowers, N/A

Roxanne Horvath, N/A

Rhey Palmer, N/A

Ronald L. Stafford, N/A

St. Augustine City Commission — Seat 2

Leanna S.A. Freeman, N/A

Susan Warner Rathbone, N/A

St. Augustine City Commission — Seat 3/Mayor

Kris Phillips, N/A

Nancy Shaver, N/A

St. Augustine Beach City Commission — Group 1

Maggie Kostka, N/A

Andrea Samuels, N/A

St. Augustine Beach City Commission — Group 2

Rosetta Bailey, N/A

Rich O’Brien, N/A

Hastings Town Council — Seat 1*

Brenda Felder, N/A

Hastings Town Council — Seat 2*

Adrian Orval French, N/A

Airport Authority — Group 4*

Randy Brunson, N/A

Airport Authority — Group 5

Steve Kira, N/A

Carl Youman, N/A

Soil & Water Conservation — District 3*

James Visser, N/A

Soil & Water Conservation — District 4*

Robert Craig Hartwig, N/A

Soil & Water Conservation — District 5

Weston Funcheon, N/A

Bryan Jones, N/A

Anastasia Mosquito Control District — Seat 1

Gina Marie LeBlanc, N/A

Merrill Paul Roland, N/A

Anastasia Mosquito Control District — Seat 3

Jackie Rock, N/A

Peter Royal, N/A

Anastasia Mosquito Control District — Seat 5

Harold Hardy, N/A

Gary Howell, N/A

Port Waterway and Beach — Group 2*

Barry Benjamin, N/A

Port Waterway and Beach — Group 4

Michael R. Fegen, N/A

Christopher K. Way, N/A

Ponte Vedra MSD — Seat 2

John Dominic Sanfilippo, N/A

Catherine “Kitty” Switkes, N/A

Ponte Vedra MSD — Seat 4

John Cellucci, N/A

John “Jake” O’Keefe, N/A

Ponte Vedra MSD — Seat 6

Adam M. Hammer, N/A

Bradley Wester, N/A

Aberdeen CCD — Seat 2*

Rhonda K. Lovett, N/A

Aberdeen CDD — Seat 4*

Angela Andrews, N/A

Brandy Creek CDD — Seat 2*

Dianne Drinkwater, N/A

Brandy Creek CDD — Seat 4

Charles E. Dicey, N/A

Ken Harp, N/A

Durbin Crossing CDD — Seat 2

Bradley S. Gordon, N/A

Sarah Gabel Hall, N/A

Durbin Crossing CDD — Seat 4

Debbie Driscoll, N/A

Len Rucker, N/A

Glen St. Johns CDD — Seat 2*

Lynne Snyder, N/A

Glen St. Johns CDD — Seat 3

David E. Nabers, N/A

Vinson Usher, N/A

Heritage Landing CDD — Seat 1*

Tim Fleming, N/A

Heritage Landing CDD — Seat 5*

Dallas Martin Dunn III, N/A

Heritage Park CDD — Seat 2*

Kenneth Kinnecom, N/A

Heritage Park CDD — Seat 4*

Joanne Wharton, N/A

Julington Creek Plantation CDD — Seat 2*

Chris Sexton, N/A

Julington Creek Plantation CDD — Seat 5

Michael Morton, N/A

Natalie Page, N/A

Marshall Creek CDD — Seat 4*

Scott Raybuck, N/A

Marshall Creek CDD — Seat 5

Anthony Giordano, N/A

Jeffrey L. Riley, N/A

Rivers Edge CDD — Seat 3

Jeffrey M. Brusoski, N/A

Judy Long, N/A

Rivers Edge CDD — Seat 5

Duane Fisher, N/A

Charles Oates, N/A

St. Johns Forest CDD — Seat 4*

Elaine F. Johnson, N/A

St. Johns Forest CDD — Seat 5*

Michael Morgenstern, N/A

Sampson Creek CDD — Seat 2

Paul Armstrong, N/A

Patrick J. O’Neill, N/A

John Slater, N/A

Li Wei-Tieng, N/A

Sampson Creek CDD — Seat 4

Tracy Hayes, N/A

Amelia Johnson, N/A

Sweetwater Creek CDD — Seat 4*

Monique Perna, N/A

Sweetwater Creek CDD — Seat 5*

Scott McNary, N/A

Turnbull Creek CDD — Seat 2

Will Simmons, N/A

Kathleen Venezia, N/A

Turnbull Creek CDD — Seat 4

Lee Clabots, N/A

Ralph J. DeFranzo, N/A

Joe Quinto, N/A

*Race is decided as of Friday due to lack of opposition; will not appear on ballot.