Incumbents who lost outspent challengers by a factor of ten to one Developers may no longer control St. Johns County after new Commissioners take office in November. From Jacksonville Today:
2 St. Johns County Commission incumbents lose seats as challengers advance
Clay Murphy unseated incumbent Roy Alaimo by a 6% margin, and Ann Taylor narrowly outpaced incumbent County Commissioner Henry Dean by just 2% — roughly 800 votes.
Taylor ran a joint campaign with District 1 candidate Ann-Marie Evans, who lost by a mere 2% of the 2,000 votes cast to incumbent Christian Whitehurst.
Speaking with Jacksonville Today on election night, Taylor was overjoyed with her and Murphy’s advancing to the general election, though she was disappointed Evans won’t be joining them on the dais.
“I think it sends a really strong message that people are not happy with what the incumbents are doing,” Taylor tells Jacksonville Today. “They’re not happy with the direction the county is going.”
Her win, she says, came despite big roadblocks, like a fake Republican Party voter guide distributed this month and former President Donald Trump’s endorsing all three incumbents on social media.
Incumbents Alaimo, Whitehurst and Dean far outraised their opponents on the campaign trail, some by nearly 10 times as much.
Murphy told Jacksonville Today he believes people have noticed that the number of homes has outpaced the quality of the county’s infrastructure. He says his victory is a clear sign of that, and made note of the fact that his opponent collected more in donations from developers and people connected to the real estate world.
“This is a resounding message to people who tend to put profits before our quality of life,” Murphy tells Jacksonville Today.
Jacksonville Today was unable to reach Whitehurst for comment on election night.
While a formal decision won’t be made until November, each candidate who won tonight will face either a no-party-affiliated candidate or a write-in candidate who won’t even appear on the ballot in that election.
Turnout is expected to be higher in the November general election after St. Johns County saw just 25% of its 222,529 voters cast ballots in the August elections.
And while the vast majority of ballots were cast for candidates whose signs are common sights around the county, candidates who have done no campaigning and have connections to one another still received thousands of votes.
A handful of other St. Johns County races are nearly or fully decided after the primary election, too.
Sheriff Rob Hardwick is almost guaranteed to get another term. After a decisive victory in the primary he will go up against write-in candidate Terri Schurman in November.
Clerk of Court Brandon Patty will remain in his seat, too, having beaten challenger Denver Cook. Patty, a U.S. Navy Reservist, is currently on deployment in the Middle East.
Voters also delivered a victory to incumbent St. Johns County School Board District 2 member Anthony E. Coleman Sr., with a 7% win margin over his opponent, Frank Cummings.
With four candidates in the District 5 School Board race, though, the two highest scoring candidates, Republican Party-endorsed Linda Thomson and St. Augustine teacher Bethany Hilbert, will face off in the general election.
They should encourage commercial and industrial development. Things that produce jobs and things to do. Already they decided to abandon an actual city in favor of Levittowns and those little shopping hubs which almost always fail in the long run and not within reasonable walking distance from the Levittowns. Americans think they know best. They don't. They create class division on purpose and wreck the environment so a middle man can turn a profit. I guarantee you the new people have no vision aside from just stopping development.
ReplyDeleteAnn Taylor promised to be interviewed by you after the election. Has she kept that promise?
ReplyDeleteNot yet. Reminded her by e-mail earlier today. I still believe in a place called Hope.
ReplyDeleteOnce she sees this page...she has no incentive to meet with you. You end up giving them shit fits regardless of what they do or don't do, blowing up the email, hyperbole etc.
ReplyDeletePffft 25% turnout. That means people either don't really care or they just hate so many other people.😆 Not looking like we have lots of options here. Just too many conservatives and those beholden to multiple irrational ideologies. The two pary system has come to a head as well... and people shouldn't have to register under a political party to vote. I should be able to vote for Harris for president and some local Republican if that's what I choose. USA is not the best example of a democracy or a republic that can be found.
ReplyDeleteIf a Commissioner candidate glares at people at meetings for weeks before ever meeting them, why should I trim my sails to satisfy their prejudices? I was not put on Earth to eschew truth-telling. Bigotry is wrong If a Commissioner-elect and her entourage "wade through slaughter to a throne," attacking an inuumbent for past contributions to Democratic candidates and for supporting Gay Pride, perhaps they need remedial Civics education. :I've lived in St. Johns County for nearly 25 years. Please explain to me, as if I were a six year old,, why I should remain silent. We, the People, must reject fear and ignorance (or fear of ignorance)! What do you reckon?
ReplyDeleteYou gotta be on their team for them to care. That's what the USA has degenerated into. It is what it is. Will probably be this way from here on out. Denial of reality isn't gonna help solve the problem either.
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