Election

On Aug. 26, several Nassau County residents will be vying in the county's primary elections to secure their place on the Nov. 4 general election's ballot. In order for residents to learn more about each candidate, My Nassau Sun will give each opposed candidate an opportunity to answer reader-submitted questions in a video that will be posted on MyNassauSun.com on Aug. 16.

If you have a question for a primary candidate running for property appraiser, sheriff, county commissioner, school board, Amelia Island Mosquito Control or the Ocean, Highway & Port Authority, please e-mail it to Tracy.Jones@jacksonville.com by July 30. Questions must be specific to the elected position and not to the individual candidate.

by AMELIA A. HART

amelia.hart@mynassausun.com

Eight Nassau County incumbents earned another term in office when they were the only candidates to qualify to run this week.

Clerk of the Circuit Court John A. Crawford, Supervisor of Elections Vicki Peterson Cannon, Tax Collector John M. Drew, Superintendent of Schools John L. Ruis, all Republicans, and non-partisan School Board members Gail G. Cook in District 2 and Jim Adams in District 4, and Soil and Water Conservation District members Tom Ford for Group 2 and Dana R. Bell for Group 4 will all return to office.

Qualifying ended at noon today.

Although Nassau County Commission District 1 incumbent Jim B. Higginbotham ran four years ago as a Republican, he qualified to run this week with no party affiliation meaning he will face Republican challenger Danny Leeper in the general election in November.

Republicans Michael C. Franklin, Tammy Stiles and Larry Williams will run for the GOP nomination for Property Appraiser in the Republican primary Aug. 26. The winner will face Democrat Ray Harper in November.

Incumbent Nassau County Sheriff Tommy Seagraves will be challenged in the Republican primary by C.W. "Connie" Johnson, Richard King and Carlos E. Slay. The winner will face Democratic candidate Jim Coe in November.

Incumbent County Commission District 5 incumbent Marianne Marshall will face Walter (JR) Boatright in the Republican primary. The winner will go up against Democrat Ramiro Palma in the District 5 race in November.

The race for Ocean, Highway & Port Authority District 1 also will go to the general election as Melvin Usery qualified as a Republican and Peter Mallory qualified with no party affiliation.

With only Republicans — Wynn Fendig, Stacy Johnson and Grady Howard Wright — qualifying to run, all Nassau County registered voters will be able to vote Aug. 26 in the race to replace County Commission District 3 member Tom Branan, who is resigning as of July 14.

All voters also can cast ballots Aug. 26 in the following races since they are either nonpartisan or only Republicans qualified to run:
• School Board District 1: Donna Martin and Dave Mazur
• Amelia Island Mosquito Control Member, Group 1: Clyde Goodbread and Ralph Jim Suarez
• Ocean, Highway & Port Authority District 2: Danny Fullwood and Jennifer Kelly-Sheffield (both Republicans); and
• Ocean, Highway & Port Authority District 3: Margie Gandy and Shirley Lear (both Republicans)

Qualifying for local, county and district races began at noon Monday and ends at noon Friday for offices to be voted on in the Aug. 26 primary and Nov. 4 general election. For qualifying results in surrounding counties, click here.

Here are the races and candidates to date for Nassau County. Party affiliation designation (R for Republican, D for Democrat) follows the name in partisan races.

by KEVIN TURNER

kevin.turner@mynassausun.com

Eric Childers won a seat on the City Commission in Tuesday's city election. Commissioner Bruce Malcolm was chosen mayor in a straw poll vote.

Childers received 472 votes to Lynn Williams' 395 for the Group 3 seat being vacated by Mayor Bill Leeper.

Malcolm got 481 votes to become the next mayor while Commissioner Ken Walker, who received 347. City commissioners, who traditionally follow the results of the straw poll vote, will choose the mayor.

I cast my vote in the Fernandina Beach City Election a little after 9 a.m. this morning.

I was voter No. 24 at the Martln Luther King Jr. Recreation Center.

That works out to 12 voters an hour. At that rate, 144 people will cast votes at the precinct.

The pace was a little better over at the Atlantic Avenue Recreation Center. According to the City Clerk's office, 55 voters had cast their votes there by 9 a.m.

At that rate, some 330 people will vote at the Atlantic Rec Center during the 12 hours the polls are open today.

Taken together, that's a pace for less than 500 people to vote in Fernandina Beach today.

by KEVIN TURNER

kevin.turner@mynassausun.com

Three Fernandina Beach residents qualified Friday for two open seats on the City Commission.

Susan Steger was the only person to qualify for the Group Two seat held by Commissioner Joe Gerrity, who chose not to run for re-election. Steger will join the city commission May 20.

Eric Childers and Lynn Williams will face off April 8 in the Group Three race to replace Mayor Bill Leeper. Leeper said he would not seek a second term after the state Department of Management Services ruled he would have to resign from the Florida Highway Patrol if elected.

KEVIN TURNER/Staff--01/28/08--Colson Hiller of the Amelia Island-Fernandina Beach-Yulee Chamber of Commerce, left, chats with Ande Romney, center, and Ben Romney, son of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, Jan. 28, 2008 at the Nassau County Republican headquarters in Fernandina Beach. Mitt Romney was busy hopping around the state Monday, attending five rallies in advance of the Florida presidential primary election Tuesday, Jan. 29.