Manatee County’s next election official will be chosen by Republican voters in Tuesday’s primary election.
Two Republican candidates have filed to fill the seat left vacant by the resignation of longtime elections official Mike Bennett in March. James Satcher, who was serving as county commissioner for District 1 at the time, was appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in April to fill the vacancy left by Bennett’s longtime chief of staff, Scott Farrington.
In case you missed it: DeSantis appoints Manatee County Commissioner James Satcher as election supervisor
Also: Court rules in Manatee election director’s favor in legal dispute over school board seat
Democrats must not vote for Manatee’s next election official
Tuesday’s Republican primary race between the two men is undecided because one candidate, Thomas W. Dell, qualified for the seat through a write-in.
In Florida, primaries in races where only members of one party are eligible to vote are open to voters of both parties. As a result, candidates who are unable to get elected often request to drop out of such races and not allow members of the opposing party to vote during the primary. Dell has not raised any funds to promote his candidacy.
Developer financing favors Satcher
Satcher has raised $122,101, including $54,100 since becoming election supervisor, $50,000 of which came from political action committees and the rest from members of the development industry.
Farrington has raised $78,294, including $67,994 since Satcher was appointed election supervisor. The bulk of his funds come from many small individual donations, about $10,000 in donations from companies tied to Schroeder Manatee Ranch and developer Rex Jensen, as well as a few PACs.
Satcher spent $116,353 on his campaign, of which about $97,929 went to SIMWINS, the firm owned by well-known political consultant Anthony Pedicini. Farrington spent about $33,621, of which about $17,477 went to Gulf Coast Imprinting and about $2,905 to Bradenton-based Minuteman Press.
