Two incumbent members of the St. Johns County Commission will lose their seats to political newcomers who promise to slow the county’s growth.
Clay Murphy ousted incumbent Roy Alaimo by 6%, and Ann Taylor defeated incumbent County Commissioner Henry Dean by just 2% – about 800 votes.
Taylor ran a joint campaign with 1st District candidate Ann-Marie Evans, who lost to incumbent Christian Whitehurst by just 2% of the 2,000 votes cast.
Talk to Jacksonville today On election night, Taylor was overjoyed that she and Murphy were advancing to the general election, but was disappointed that Evans will not be joining them on the podium.
“I think it sends a really strong message that people are not happy with what the incumbents are doing,” Taylor says Jacksonville today“They are not happy with the direction the district is taking.”
She says she won despite major obstacles, such as a fake Republican Party voter handbook distributed this month and former President Donald Trump’s support for all three incumbents on social media.
Incumbents Alaimo, Whitehurst and Dean raised significantly more money during the election campaign than their opponents, some almost ten times as much.
Murphy said Jacksonville today He believes people have noticed that the number of housing units exceeds the quality of the county’s infrastructure. He says his victory is a clear sign of that, pointing to the fact that his opponent has raised more donations from developers and people involved in the real estate industry.
“This is a clear message to people who put profits above our quality of life,” says Murphy Jacksonville today.
Jacksonville today Whitehurst could not be reached for comment on election night.
While a formal decision will not be made until November, any of the candidates who win tonight will have to face either an independent candidate or a candidate who will not appear on the ballot in this election.
Voter turnout is expected to be higher in the November general election, after only 25% of St. Johns County’s 222,529 voters cast ballots in August’s election.
And while the vast majority of votes went to candidates whose campaign posters are commonly seen across the country, non-campaign candidates with ties to each other also received thousands of votes.
Several other races in St. Johns County are also almost or completely decided after the primaries.
Sheriff Rob Hardwick is all but certain to win another term in office. After a clear victory in the primary, he will face off against non-primary candidate Terri Schurman in November.
Clerk of the Court Brandon Patty will also keep his post after defeating challenger Denver Cook. Patty, a U.S. Navy reservist, is currently stationed in the Middle East.
Voters also gave incumbent St. Johns County School District 2 Representative Anthony E. Coleman Sr. a victory, by 7% over his opponent Frank Cummings.
There are four candidates in the 5th District school board race, and the two highest-scoring candidates, Republican-backed Linda Thomson and St. Augustine teacher Bethany Hilbert, will face off in the general election.
