Election season off to strong start
Between now and Nov. 5 promises to bring to cities, counties, states and of course the entire nation the sort of energized election hoopla that comes but once every four years.
Franklin and Gulf counties are, of course, no exception, as early voting began Saturday and will run until this Saturday, with the primary Election Day set for Tuesday, Aug. 20.
Based on the estimates made by supervisors of election, turnout is likely to be much higher in Gulf, as there are several highly contested elections there, while Franklin has but one.
Gulf County Supervisor of Elections John Hanlon estimated that turnout in the 10 precincts, including both Election Day, early voting and vote by mail balloting could run as high as 68 to 72 percent, based on historical numbers for primaries in a presidential year.
“I’ve seen it as low as 48 percent,” he said.
Franklin County Supervisor Heather Riley said that with no constitutional officers on the primary ballot, and just one contested county commission race, turnout is likely to be only about one-third the size of Gulf’s.
“I guesstimate maybe 22%,” she said. “We had 25% in 2020 with three district races on the ballot. It has been slow but I have hopes of a good turnout for Election Day.”
As of Monday morning, turnout was running at 8.44 percent, as 453 voters had cast their ballots by mail, while 130 had taken advantage of early voting at the supervisor’s sites in Apalachicola and Carrabelle.
In Gulf County, 684 voters had cast ballots by mail, with 539 taking advantage of early voting, for a turnout of a little more than 11 percent.
In Gulf County, four elections will be decided outright when ballots are tallied Tuesday evening, with one other possibly being resolved, and a sixth election choosing a nominee for the general election Nov. 5.
The race for sheriff pits incumbent Mike Harrison against a retired deputy, Vince Everett, and both men squared off at the candidates forum held Thursday, Aug. 8 at Port St. Joe Elementary School, sponsored by the Republican Party of Gulf County.
Both men are among the county’s 6,742 registered Republicans, so all voters, including the county’s 2,610 Democrats and 1,813 who are from smaller parties or who have no party affiliation, will vote in that race, with the winner Tuesday bagging all the bullets.
A second contest for a constitutional officer post, that of tax collector, pits two Republicans, Gail Alsobrook and Ashley Forehand, in the race to secure the party’s nomination at the primary and then face Democrat Candye Lewis in November.
Both candidates appeared at the forum, although Alsobrook, who chairs the county’s Republican party, did not conduct any of the proceedings. That honor was reserved for Vice Chairman Preston Russ.
The most high-energy contest that emerged last week is the county commission race in District 3, where incumbent Patrick Farrell is facing a challenge from Randy Pridgeon. Facing prepared questions from Maizie Stone, secretary of the county GOP, the two man sparred over issues of land use regulations and concurrency within the county, as well as whether it was right to grant County Administrator Michael Hammond discretion in approving up to $500,000 in change orders to existing projects without requiring formal county commission approval.
Both men are Republicans, so everyone, including Democrats and those without party affiliation, will cast ballots in that race, with the winner Tuesday taking home the win.
The race for county commissioner in District 1 pits incumbent David Rich against challenger Christopher “Spike” McLemore, and since both men are with the GOP, all voters in that Wewa area district will cast ballots in the primary, with the winner Tuesday pocketing the prize.
The race for county commissioner in District 2, also a Wewa area district, pits incumbent Jack Husband, facing his first test before voters after being appointed to the job by Gov. Ron DeSantis, against two challengers, George “Buddy” Cooper and John Murnan.
All three had taken part in a well-attended forum hosted by the Wewahitchka Woman’s Club last month, but only Murnan was a part of the Port St. Joe forum. With only members of the GOP running Tuesday, all voters in the district are eligible to vote in this universal primary, with the top vote getters toting home the bacon.
The only non-partisan race, which is always open to all registered voters regardless of party affiliation, is that of the school board race in District 4, where incumbent Marvin Davis faces a challenge from Equillar Gainer, Charles Gathers and Heather Jones. Jones was absent from the Port St. Joe forum, citing a previous commitment of taking a child to college.
Because it is a non-partisan race, a candidate must receive at least 50 percent of the votes cast to win outright at the primary. If neither secures a majority, then the top two vote getters will square off in November.
In Franklin County, the only local race on the primary ballot is for county commissioner in District 1, which includes St. George Island and portions of Eastpoint.
That race pits incumbent Ricky Dallas Jones against challenger Russell Alan Turner. Since both men are Republicans, all 1,755 voters in the district are eligible to vote, regardless of party affiliation, which breaks down to 1,035 Republicans, 440 Democrats and 280 without party affiliation or linked to a small party. The winner Tuesday secures the post for the next four years.
Ricky Jones
Russell Turner
On a statewide basis, incumbent Republican Senator Rick Scott is facing opposition, but is considered the overwhelming favorite, as is Democratic challenger Debbie Murcasel-Powell in her party’s primary.
Republican State Senator Corey Simon and State Rep Jason Shoaf are both unopposed in the GOP primary, but Simon’s challenger in November will be decided Tuesday by Democrats weighing the choice between Daryl Parks and Kimblin Nesmith.
Meet the Editor
David Adlerstein, The Apalachicola Times’ digital editor, started with the news outlet in January 2002 as a reporter.
Prior to then, David Adlerstein began as a newspaperman with a small Boston weekly, after graduating magna cum laude from Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. He later edited the weekly Bellville Times, and as business reporter for the daily Marion Star, both not far from his hometown of Columbus, Ohio.
In 1995, he moved to South Florida, and worked as a business reporter and editor of Medical Business newspaper. In Jan. 2002, he began with the Apalachicola Times, first as reporter and later as editor, and in Oct. 2020, also began editing the Port St. Joe Star.