Updated Tuesday, November 8, 9:45 p.m.
All three incumbent school board members in Collier County have lost their races to challengers.
Voters in Lee and Collier counties have school board seats to decide while Lee voters will choose if the district's next superintendent will be elected or appointed.
Collier School Board: 3 of 5 board seats up for election. All races are voted on “at large” regardless of party affiliation. If no candidate in a race receives at least 50% of the vote in the primary election, the top two vote-getters in that race advance to the November general election
District One:
Jerry D. Rutherford
Jory Westberry (incumbent)
District Three:
Kelly Lichter
Jen Mitchell (incumbent)
District Five:
Timothy Moshier
Roy Terry (incumbent)
Lee County School Board: 4 of 7 school board seats up for election. Only voters who live in a district can vote on that race with the exception of the District 6 seat, which is voted on at large
District 1:
Sam Fisher
Kathy Fanny
District 4:
Debbie Jordan (incumbent)
Dan Severson
District 5: (No general election race as Armor Persons defeated incumbent Gwyn Gittens in the primary)
District 6: **This is an at-large seat on the school board meaning that anyone can vote in this race)
(incumbent Betsy Vaughn NOT SEEKING REELECTION)
Jada Langford-Fleming
Denise Nystrom
Lee County referendum on elected school superintendent
Lee County voters will decide an amendment seeking to change the Lee County School District Superintendent from a position appointed by the school board to an elected position.
Sarasota County School Board: No General election races
District 1: There's no general election race as incumbent Bridget Ziegler won in the primary election.
District 4: longtime board member Shirley Brown did not seek re-election. There's no general election race as Robyn Marinelli (endorsed by GOP party) won in the primary.
District 5: incumbent Jane Goodwin did not seek reelection after three terms). There's no general election in this race as conservative Timothy Enos won in the primary.
The Sarasota School board has shifted after this election from a 3-2 left-leaning majority to a 4-1 right-leaning majority on the board.
Charlotte County:
There are no local races of interest in Charlotte, but there are three local amendments:
Charlotte County Charter Amendment No. 2 Personnel Policies for County Attorney and Director of Economic Development Shall Article II, Section 2.3.D and F. of the Charlotte County Charter be amended to apply the same Charter personnel policies applicable to the County Administrator to the County Attorney and Director of Economic Development?
Charlotte County Charter Amendment No. 3 Casino Gambling Shall the Charlotte County Charter be amended to require referendum approval to allow Casino Gambling in Charlotte County?
Charlotte County School District AD VALOREM MILLAGE ELECTION Shall the Charlotte County School District continue the current one mill ad valorem millage, beginning July 1, 2023, and ending June 30, 2027, to maintain the quality of the public school system, to enhance school security, to recruit and retain highly effective teachers and employees with competitive salaries, to enhance student achievement, to provide workforce development and maintain the current increase in instructional time with oversight by an independent citizens' committee? Yes, for continuing current millage No, against continuing current millage.
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