Karen Cox Jaroch

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Karen Cox Jaroch

Nonpartisan

Prior offices

Hillsborough Soil and Water Conservation District Seat 2

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Karen Cox Jaroch was a member of the Hillsborough Soil and Water Conservation District in Florida, representing Seat 2. She assumed office on January 5, 2021. She left office on January 3, 2023.

Cox Jaroch ran for election to the Hillsborough Soil and Water Conservation District to represent Seat 2 in Florida. She won in the general election on November 3, 2020.

Cox Jaroch completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.

Elections

2020

See also: Municipal elections in Hillsborough County, Florida (2020)

General election

General election for Hillsborough Soil and Water Conservation District Seat 2

Karen Cox Jaroch defeated Douglas Rivero, Erik Challenger, and Michael Harvey in the general election for Hillsborough Soil and Water Conservation District Seat 2 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Karen Cox Jaroch (Nonpartisan)	35.1	208,266
		Douglas Rivero (Nonpartisan)	23.8	141,113
	Submit photo	Erik Challenger (Nonpartisan)	22.7	134,718
		Michael Harvey (Nonpartisan)	18.3	108,677

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 592,774
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Campaign themes

2020

Video for Ballotpedia

Video submitted to Ballotpedia Released September 29, 2020

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Karen Cox Jaroch completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Cox Jaroch's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Karen Cox Jaroch is "rooted" in our community having graduated from Plant High School in Tampa and then USF's College of Engineering. She and her husband Mike chose to raise their four children in Hillsborough County. Karen has a long track record of community service and will ensure our critical natural resources are preserved for our children and future generations to enjoy.

Karen is a licensed Professional Engineer and qualified by the Florida Dept of Environmental Protection as a Stormwater, Erosion and Sediment Control Inspector. Karen is technically competent, she will provide necessary oversight, and she will be a good steward of our precious resources. Karen is the best candidate to supervise the agency.

Karen will protect our local farms and our precious natural environment.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Advance the agency's mission to provide technical support to our local farmers which is a key economic driver in Hillsborough County.
• Grow partnerships to educate our school children on agricultural processes and inspire in them a love for our natural environment.
• Advocate for solutions that address our water quantity and quality to include adequate infrastructure in place to match growth and development to prevent sewage dumps in the bay which harm fish and fowl.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I believe water issues are the most pressing issues to Florida's environment - both water quantity and water quality. Lack of adequate stormwater and wastewater infrastructure (ie, storage capacity) through years of abandonment and neglect has led to widescale street flooding and city officials in the region pumping harmful sewage into our Aquifer or dumping it into Tampa Bay both of which exacerbates algae blooms and harms fish and birds. As residents from other states are flocking to our county, there are also concerns that our potable water supply won't keep up with demand.

Drawing too much water from the Aquifer near the coast can cause salt-water intrusion which is hard to mitigate. These issues are caused primarily by overdevelopment without the necessary infrastructure in place to match growth and increased density. Too often our elected officials choose to allocate funds to costly "wants" rather than our vital "needs."

These issues are bigger than the scope of the Soil and Water Conservation board authority I would possess if I am elected, but hopefully, these answers give you a glimpse into my thinking and demonstrate how I would guide the decision-making I am in control of.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

I have many historical figures I admire for various reasons, but I think my direct interaction over the years with former Commissioner Fran Davin who chaired the Hillsborough Regional Transit agency (HART) when I was newly appointed to that body made a great impression on me and how I would like to govern. Even though we were on opposite sides of the aisle politically, Davin demonstrated profound statesmanship which I aspire to model in my own public service. Davin allowed all viewpoints to be considered before the HART board voted on major policy decisions which helped us reach consensus on many issues and give the people of Hillsborough County the best outcomes.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

I vaguely recall the first moon landing as a very young child and learned that Earth is part of a vast universe and that there are no limits to what one can accomplish with dedication and effort.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

At age 16, I was a certified water safety instructor and taught parent-tot classes over the summer at the local YMCA at Tampa's Interbay swimming pool.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

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Hillsborough Soil and Water Conservation District Seat 2

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