by Joe Courter
Yes we just had an election here in Gainesville, and it came out pretty well. With a higher voter turnout driven by contested presidential primaries, we saw Mayor Ed Braddy turned out of office by Lauren Poe, and Adrian Hayes-Santos score an overwhelming triumph in the City Commission race.
But being a democracy, and an even numbered year, we are not done. August 30 will be the Primary voting day, so if you are a recent or longtime registered Democrat, you get to vote again in a number of races which feature multiple Democratic candidates.
This includes very important races locally as both Alachua County Commissioners Robert Hutchinson and Mike Byerly have Primary challengers. More details will be talked about in the May/June and July/August Iguanas regarding other races. These include two School Board races (yay Eileen Roy), a much needed challenge to Sheriff Sadie Darnell by Zac Zadalis (yay Zac), various constitutional offices, and judges. Major ones to watch include Keith Perry (R) vs Rod Smith (D) for State Senator District 8, and Marihelen Wheeler (awesome D) against whoever is left from the Repub primary for State Rep #21. And the revolting Tea Partier Ted Yoho (R) is being challenged by Ed Emery (D) for US House of Representative.
As Bernie Sanders said when he was here in Gainesville, politics isn’t a sport you watch from the stands, it is by participating in the process that you amplify you voice and make democracy real. More next time …