by joe courter
We’re two months from Election Day on Nov. 6 as this Iguana goes to print. We will have another edition out in early October, but now the campaigning has moved from the primaries to the main elections.
From our point of view, the primaries went well with one exception. There was one surprise in the District 21 race, and on this I must apologize. Both candidates in the race were good, and, without a lot of research, I went with the candidate who had more name recognition and money – Aaron Bosshardt – as the incumbent Republican Keith Perry was going to be hard to unseat.
Well, Andrew Morey (Bosshardt’s opponent) knocked on a lot of doors with a grassroots campaign and beat Bosshardt in the primary, and we couldn’t be happier.
We have subsequently found Morey to be an excellent candidate, and Bosshardt has rolled his campaign into Morey’s. This is a winnable race, and we encourage volunteers to help out.
Locally, we also hope people will jump in on the County races listed below with whatever support they can give. This is a pivotal election for both the Alachua County Commission and the Alachua County School Board, and these candidates will make a big difference in the coming years for our County.
The U.S. Congress District 3 had a surprise on the Republican side when the Tea Party’s Ted Yoho knocked out long time Congressman Cliff Stearns. Yoho will now face JR Gaillot, a Democrat who had no primary opponent. This is a pretty stacked conservative district, so it’ll be an uphill battle. It’ll be interesting if the talkative Yoho will agree to the rigorous debate schedule Gaillot is requesting.
THE IGUANA’S ELECTION RESOURCES AND TIPS
Alachua County Races
County Commission, District 1
Mike Byerly (DEM)
PO Box 776, Micanopy, FL 32667
352-466-7030, byerly4@gmail.com, www.electmikebyerly.com
County Commission, District 3
Robert “Hutch” Hutchinson (DEM)
2619 SE 30th Place, Gainesville, FL 32641
352-256-6043, electhutch2012@gmail.com, www.electhutch.com
County Commission, District 5
Charles S. “Chuck” Chestnut, IV (DEM)
1773 NE 21st Place, Gainesville, FL 32609
352-215-0659, charleschestnutiv@gmail.com
School Board, District 4
Leanetta McNealy (DEM)
1266 SE 12th Ave., Gainesville, FL 32641
352-373-9472, info@leamcnealy.com, www.leamcnealy.com
State Races
Florida State Representative, District 21
Andrew Morey [DEM]
PO Box 357121, Gainesville, FL 32635-7121
352-538-0379, andrew@morey2012.org, www.morey2012.org
Congressional Races
U.S. Congress, District 3
JR Gaillot [DEM]
PO Box 8747, Fleming Island, FL 32006
904-531-4737, info@jrgaillot.com, www.jrgaillot.com
Useful Resources
Alachua County Democratic Party
901 NW 8th Ave., Gainesville, FL 32601
www.alachuadems.org
Obama For America Offices
315 SE 2nd Ave. OR 2727 NW 43rd St., Gainesville, FL
Alachua County Women for Obama
Karen Epple, 352-642-6843