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Chris Hunter

Results are in for Florida’s primary

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Florida’s voters went to the polls last week in a primary that captured national attention when Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum stunned political prognosticators by defeating the predicted winner Gwen Graham.

If he wins in November, Gillum would become Florida’s first black governor.

On the Republican side of the ledger, Congressman Ron DeSantis — endorsed by President Donald J. Trump — carried the day, defeating Adam Putnam, a longtime Florida politician, who had served as Florida’s Commissioner of Agriculture and five terms in Congress, representing Central Florida.

Locally, 85,907 voters cast their ballots in Pasco County, representing a 24.84 percent turnout of the county’s 345,879 registered voters.

“The turnout was considerably higher than I expected and, in this case, I’m never more happy to be wrong,” Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley said, via email.

The 2018 Primary turnout represented a 66 percent increase from the last midterm primary in 2014, Corley said.

“It’s apparent the voters are more engaged than in previous cycles,” the supervisor of elections added.

Hillsborough County experienced a slightly higher turnout, with 219,118 ballots cast, representing a 26.16 percent turnout of the county’s 837,681 registered voters.

DeSantis and Graham garnered the most votes in the governor’s race among Pasco voters, while DeSantis and Gillum were the top vote-getters in that race in Hillsborough County.

While many races on the ballot were true primary choices, with voters deciding which candidate should represent the Democrats and Republicans in the general elections, the races for judges and school board members were nonpartisan, meaning winners could be named if a candidate secured more than 50 percent of the vote.

That happened in two of the three Pasco County School Board races on the ballot.

Allen Altman and Cynthia Armstrong were both re-elected to another term, which the winner of the seat vacated by retiring Steve Luikart will be decided in the general election, with a run-off between Megan Harding and Tara M. O’ Connor.

The Pasco race for the Circuit Judge 6th Judicial Circuit, Group 4, also will require a run-off in November between Davis Ellis and Roxanne Fixsen. In that race, none of the three candidates secured more than 50 percent of the vote.

TOP VOTE-GETTERS IN KEY RACES

Pasco County Republicans
Federal
U.S. Senate: Rick Scott

State
Governor: Ron DeSantis
Attorney General: Ashley Moody
Commissioner of Agriculture: Baxter Troutman
State Representative District 37: Ardian Zika

Pasco County Democrats
Federal
U.S. Rep. District 12: Chris Hunter

State
Governor: Gwen Graham
Attorney General: Sean Shaw
Commissioner of Agriculture: Nicole ‘Nikki’ Fried
State Senator District 20: Kathy Lewis

Local races, No Party Affiliation
Pasco County
Circuit Judge 6th Judicial Circuit
Group 9: Christine Helinger
Group 36: Doneene D. Loar
Group 40: Thomas H. “Tommy” Minkoff
Group 45: Rebecca Hamilton

County Judge
Group 7: Kent Compton

Pasco School Board
District 1: Allen Altman
District 3: Cynthia Armstrong
District 5:  A run-off will be held between Megan Harding and Tara M. O’Connor in the November general election.

Hillsborough County Republicans
State races
Governor: Rick DeSantis
Attorney General: Ashley Moody
Commissioner of Agriculture: Baxter Troutman
State Representative, District 64: James Grant

Local races, Republican
Hillsborough County Commission, District 2: Ken Hagan
Hillsborough County Commission, District 5: Victor Crist
Hillsborough County Commission, District 7: Todd Marks

Hillsborough County Democrats
Federal
U.S. Congress, District 12: Chris Hunter

State races
Governor: Andrew Gillum
Attorney General: Sean Shaw
Commissioner of Agriculture: Nicole ‘Nikki’ Fried
State Senator, District 20: Kathy Lewis

Local races, Democratic
Hillsborough County Commission, District 5: Mariella Smith
Hillsborough County Commission, District 7: Kimberly Overman

Hillsborough County School Board (No political affiliation)
District 1: William Henry Person and Steve Cona will have a run-off in the November general election
District 2: Stacy Hahn
District 4: Melissa Snively
District 6: Karen Perez and Henry “Shake” Washington will have a runoff in the November general election.

Complete results can be found at PascoVotes.com and VoteHillsborough.org.

Published September 5, 2018

Political Agenda 07/18/2018

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Sample ballots available
Pasco County Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley has announced that sample ballots for the Aug. 26 Primary Election are available online at PascoVotes.com, and will be mailed to Pasco County voters on Aug. 6.

To view sample ballots online, voters need to know their voting precinct and party of registration.

Club meetings

Republican Club of Central Pasco
Mike Wells will be the guest speaker at the Republican Club of Central Pasco’s meeting on July 23. The club meets at Copperstone Executive Suites, 3632 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., in Land O’ Lakes. The social will begin at 6:30 p.m., with the meeting starting at 7 p.m. For more information, call (813) 996-3011.

Trinity Democratic Club meeting
The Trinity Democratic Club’s July 25 meeting will feature Chris Hunter, candidate for the district 12 seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, and Amanda Murphy, candidate in district 16 seat in of the Florida Senate. The meeting begins at 6:30 p.m., at Fox Hollow Golf Club, at 10050 Robert Trent Jones Parkway in Trinity. Doors open at 5 p.m., for dinner and happy hour (self-pay) with food and beverages available for purchase throughout the meeting. For more information, call (415) 609-3633.

Candidate forums

  • Idlewild Baptist Church, at 18333 Exciting Idlewild Blvd., in Lutz, will host a candidate’s forum on July 29 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
  • The East Pasco Democratic Club will host a political forum for all Democrats, Republicans and no party affiliation for local and state offices on Aug. 4 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., at Alice Hall Community Center, 38116 Fifth Ave., in Zephyrhills. The League of Women Voters will be there to register voters or update voters’ current registration. Light refreshments will be served.

Ice cream social
The Central Pasco Democratic Party will host an ice cream social on Aug. 12 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., at the Meadow Pointe Community Center, 28245 County Line Road. Those attending can meet other Democrats and talk with local candidates.

Endorsements

  • The West Central Florida Police Benevolent Association has endorsed Mike Moore, in his re-election bid for the District 2 seat on the Pasco County Commission, according to Moore’s campaign.
  • The Veterans Caucus; Alex Sink, former chief financial officer of Florida; and the Democratic Women’s Club of Florida, have endorsed Brandi Geoit in the race for District 4 seat on the Pasco County Commission, according to Geoit’s campaign.

Published July 18, 2018

Candidates qualify, political groups have meetings

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Candidates have qualified for the upcoming election, giving voters plenty to consider. Here are candidates in key races during the 2018 election cycle.

Primary voters could decide the outcome for three Pasco County School Board seats. School board races are nonpartisan. Although candidates must live within specific districts, voters countywide select the winners. If a candidate does not receive more than 50 percent of the vote in the Aug. 28 primary, the top two vote-getters will face off on the Nov. 6 general election ballot.

Winners in two Pasco County Commission districts will be decided in the general election.

Key Pasco County races 

Pasco County Commission
District 2
Mike Moore (Rep), incumbent
Kelly Smith (Dem)

District 4
Brandi Geoit (Dem)
Mike Wells (Rep)

Pasco County School Board
District 1
Allen Altman (NPA), incumbent
Kenneth J. Mathis (NPA)
Brian Staver (NPA)

District 3
Cynthia Armstrong (NPA), incumbent
Meghan E. Hamer (NPA)
Heide R. Janshon (NPA)

District 5
Mike Aday (NPA)
Megan C. Harding (NPA)
Kathryn “Kassie” Hutchinson (NPA)
Tara M. O’Connor (NPA)

State and federal races
Florida State Senate
District 10
Michael Cottrell (Dem)
Wilton Simpson (Rep), incumbent

District 16
Ed Hooper, (Rep)
Leo Karruli (Rep)
Amanda Murphy (Dem)

District 20
Joy Gibson (Dem)
John Manners Houman (Rep)
Tom Lee (Rep), incumbent
Kathy Lewis (Dem)

Florida State House
District 36
Linda Jack (Dem)
Amber Mariano (Rep), incumbent

District 38
Danny Burgess (Rep), incumbent
David ‘TK’ Hayes, (NPA)

U.S. House of Representatives
District 12
Gus Michael Bilirakis (Rep), incumbent
Chris Hunter (Dem)
Stephen M. Perenich (Dem)
Angelika Purkis (Dem)
Robert Matthew Tager (Dem)

Mosquito Control, Seat 2 candidates
Andy Carney, Matthew Skeeter Abbott, Cory P. Sommers and Chris Tyler have qualified for this nonpartisan race.

Political meetings

Land O’ Lakes Democrats
The Land O Lakes Democratic Club will meet July 11 at 6:30 p.m. The featured guest will be Chris Hunter, former FBI agent, federal prosecutor, and now a candidate for U.S. Congress. The club also will be talking about boosting voter turnout. The club meets at Brick City Eatery, 16540 Pointe Village Drive, Suite 108, in Lutz.

Wesley Chapel Republican Club
The Wesley Chapel Republican Club will meet July 12 at 6:30 p.m., at Lexus of Wesley Chapel, 5350 Eagleston Blvd., in Wesley Chapel. Pasco County Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley will speak about the many layers of security protecting the Pasco County voting system, as well as changes in voting laws since the last election. Admission is free, all are welcome, and coffee and homemade desserts will be served. For more information, contact Peter Cracchiolo at (813) 360-9813 or .

Published July 4, 2018