Florida Municipal Election Results: Recounts & Runoffs

Florida voters headed to the polls Tuesday in municipal races stretching from the Panhandle to Palm Beach, delivering results that will reshape city halls across the state and triggering at least two contests that aren’t finished yet.

The most suspenseful finish came in Boca Raton, where the mayoral race is headed to a recount after the top two candidates finished just 25 votes apart. The razor-thin margin will force election officials to take a second look before anyone can claim victory. Meanwhile, in the same city, a slate running under the “Save Boca” banner swept the City Council races. Michelle Grau, Jon Pearlman, and Stacy Sipple all claimed seats, suggesting voters there wanted a unified direction at City Hall even as the mayoral contest remains unresolved.

In St. Pete Beach, Scott Tate defeated incumbent Adrian Petrila in a mayoral race that had turned ugly well before Election Day. The campaign between the two Republicans grew bitter enough that the contest drew unusual attention for a small coastal city. Tate ultimately prevailed, and the city now gets to move past what had become a bruising intraparty fight.

Up in Apopka, no candidate cleared the threshold needed to avoid a runoff. Voters there will return to the polls for a second round to decide their next mayor, extending a race that had already generated significant local heat.

Results came in across Palm Beach County as well. In Delray Beach, Judy Mollica won an open commission seat, with observers noting she brings a reputation as a frequent swing vote to the dais. In Palm Beach Gardens, Rachelle Litt won election and Dana Middleton secured re-election to the City Council. In West Palm Beach, incumbents Cathleen Ward and Christy Fox each beat back challengers and won new terms.

Pembroke Pines voters kept Mike Hernandez and Thomas Good on the City Commission, returning both incumbents to office.

Over on the Gulf Coast in Gulfport, Jennifer Webb and Jennifer Daunch both won seats on the City Council.

In Central Florida, Keith Givens won what was described as a historic election in Maitland. Joseph McMullen won another term on the Oakland Town Commission.

While voters sorted out local races, the noise out of Tallahassee grew louder. Former House Speaker Paul Renner took direct aim at the Legislature, accusing lawmakers of failing Florida families on two fronts. He pointed out that for the second consecutive year, the Legislature is on track to miss its one constitutional obligation, passing a state budget, while simultaneously ignoring the cost-of-living crisis that residents across the state have been raising with their representatives. Renner’s criticism landed as an unusually sharp rebuke from someone with deep ties to the Republican caucus that controls both chambers.

On the confirmation front, State Sen. Tom Wright was one of only five votes against confirming Agency for Health Care Administration Secretary Shevaun Harris. Wright argued Harris had falsely claimed a women’s shelter was safe when it was not, and said he had previously removed her from his office over the dispute. His opposition did not carry the day, but the vote put his concerns on the public record.

The culture war front stayed active on social media, with House Republican Dean Black declaring DEI dead in Florida, a reference to ongoing legislative and executive efforts to dismantle diversity programs at state institutions.

Democratic strategist Steve Schale offered a lighter moment, crediting state Rep. Fiona McFarland with what he called a historic first, a reference to a “6-7” score in a floor debate. Whether that lands as a basketball joke or a procedural quirk probably depends on how closely you follow both chamber rules and Heat playoff seeding.

For South Florida, the closest watch stays on Boca Raton, where a 25-vote gap means the mayoral race is far from settled. Recount procedures will now determine who runs a city of more than 100,000 people. Election supervisors will need to move carefully, and both campaigns will be watching every step of the process.