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Municipal elections in Orlando, Florida (2015)
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| Note: Cities listed in this box are those among the 100 largest in the United States that held elections in 2015. |
The city of Orlando, Florida, held elections for mayor and city council on November 3, 2015. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was September 4, 2015. Three of the six city council seats were up for election.[1]
Mayor Buddy Dyer and all three city council incumbents filed for and won re-election. Dyer defeated challengers Sunshine Grund and Paul Paulson. District 2 incumbent Tony Ortiz was unopposed. Patty Sheehan defeated Aretha Olivarez and Randy Ross. The District 6 race saw incumbent Samuel B. Ings defeat challengers Nathan Chambers, Lawanna Gelzer, Marcus Robinson and Ka'Juel Washington.[2]
Mayor
Candidate list
- Buddy Dyer
- Incumbent Dyer was first elected in 2003. - Sunshine Grund
- Paul Paulson
Election results
| Mayor of Orlando, General election, 2015 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Buddy Dyer Incumbent |
62.5% | 13,953 |
| Paul Paulson | 33.1% | 7,383 |
| Sunshine Grund | 4.4% | 979 |
| Total Votes | 22,315 | |
| Source: Orlando Supervisor of Elections, "2015 Official General Election Results," accessed November 16, 2015 | ||
City council
Candidate list
District 2
- Tony Ortiz - Incumbent Ortiz was first elected in 2008.
District 4
- Patty Sheehan - Incumbent Sheehan was first elected in 2000.
- Aretha Olivarez
- Randy Ross
District 6
- Samuel B. Ings - Incumbent Ings was first elected in 2006.
- Nathan Chambers
- Lawanna Gelzer
- Marcus Robinson
- Ka'Juel Washington
Election results
| Orlando City Council District 4, General election, 2015 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Patty Sheehan Incumbent |
68.5% | 3,911 |
| Randy Ross | 20.0% | 1,141 |
| Aretha Olivarez | 11.5% | 654 |
| Total Votes | 5,706 | |
| Source: Orlando Supervisor of Elections, "2015 Official General Election Results," accessed November 16, 2015 | ||
| Orlando City Council District 6, General election, 2015 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Samuel B. Ings Incumbent |
52.0% | 1,617 |
| Nathan Chambers | 17.3% | 537 |
| Marcus Robinson | 13.4% | 417 |
| Lawanna Gelzer | 12.5% | 389 |
| Ka'Juel Washington | 4.9% | 151 |
| Total Votes | 3,111 | |
| Source: Orlando Supervisor of Elections, "2015 Official General Election Results," accessed November 16, 2015 | ||
Issues
Property tax increase
In September 2014, the Orlando City Council voted to increase property taxes by 17.7 percent. The increase was part of Mayer Dyer’s proposed budget to address a shortfall of over $30 million.[3] Dyer addressed the increase at the time saying, "It would be nice if we could run the city with no taxes at all, but it doesn’t work that way."[4]
Mayor Dyer chose not to make the budget the focus of his campaign, but emphasized the issues of public safety, business development and public-private partnerships. He outlined this on his campaign website, saying, "partnerships between the government, businesses, residents and civic communities are the hallmark of the Dyer Administration."[5]
Challenger Paul Paulson, a businessman and former attorney, cited the increase as the reason for his candidacy. In addition to repealing the 17.7 percent property tax increase, Paulson pledged to look at consolidation options and to "downsize the bureaucracy" in the city.[6] In a September 19 e-mail, Paulson stated:
| “ | I will review every single city program, department, project and service to make sure we are operating efficiently. We will immediately roll back the Mayor’s recent 17.7% tax increase. Accountability and transparency will be restored.[7] | ” |
| —Paul Paulson[8] | ||
The issue of the property tax increase was also predominant in the District 4 council race. Incumbent Patty Sheehan, who supported the increase, said "perfect storm" conditions necessitated the millage raise.[9]
Sheehan’s opponent, talk show host Randy Ross, called the tax hike “excessive” on his campaign website and proposed revisiting the tax base every two years, as opposed to waiting for longer periods between proposed increases.[10]
Council district races highlight social issues
While District 2 incumbent Tony Ortiz ran unopposed, Districts 4 and 6 featured races where social issue themes took center stage. According to the Orlando Sentinel, the number of homeless in the city increased by 50 percent between 2009 and 2014. In addition to the visible homeless population, the city also faced the challenge of a number of working poor.[11] Provision of basic necessities, affordable housing and job creation were key talking points leading up to the election.
In District 4, incumbent Patty Sheehan made headlines in early 2015 when she remarked on resident safety concerns associated with church meal programs. Sheehan suggested that the churches distributing meals to homeless should provide their own security.[12] Challenger Randy Ross countered on his website, saying, "I do not support the idea of preventing organizations from feeding the homeless. In fact, I wish the City had more compassion to help change the homeless landscape… We need to be partners in the process of helping the homeless by helping Veterans as well as children."[13]
Sheehan’s other challenger, Aretha Olivarez, highlighted economic development, healthcare and social development on her campaign website. She said she would increase support for microenterprises and would encourage corporations to partner with nonprofits on social issues. "We can do better together to solve the multiple social issues in our city (homelessness, childhood obesity, mental health). I would support nonprofits in becoming more educated on the business of doing good, and encourage more corporations to adopt nonprofits who help solve our social problems," she wrote.[14]
The dialogue in District 6, which attracted the largest candidate group, echoed and expanded on these themes. Incumbent Samuel B. Ings faced four challengers, all of whom stressed the importance of increased focus on social issues.
Lawanna Gelzer, a National Action Network chapter president, cited her community focus as a platform issue. She stated in a September 23 debate her intent to create an independent review board for the police department to review what she believed was a serious problem with the use of excessive force by city officers.[15] Candidate Marcus Robinson stated in the same public forum that his focus would be establishing a resource center and apprenticeship program for job seekers. Ka'Juel Washington, a law professor at Florida A&M, stressed his legal expertise and efforts fighting for the area's poor during the debate. "I service the coalition for the homeless...and I do it absolutely for free. I service the lowest of the low, the poorest of the poor," he said.[16]
For his part, real estate agent Nathan Chambers focused his debate remarks on his business experience and his belief in his ability to create jobs.[17] His campaign website noted that "jobs, safe neighborhoods and better housing" were his priorities for District 6.[18]
Ings, who was not present for the debate, detailed his "strategic vision" for District 6 on his official city council profile through the following focus areas:
| “ | ” |
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Orlando Florida Election. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
- City of Orlando - City of Orlando elections
- City of Orlando - 2015 Election timeline
- City of Orlando - 2015 candidate filing
Footnotes
- ↑ City of Orlando, "2015 Election timeline," accessed August 10, 2015
- ↑ City of Orlando, "Announced City Candidates for the 2015 General Election," accessed September 8, 2015
- ↑ Orlando Sentinel, "City of Orlando: No tax increase this year," July 13, 2015
- ↑ Orlando Sentinel, "Orlando votes to raise property tax rate 17.7 percent," September 15, 2014
- ↑ Buddy Dyer campaign website, accessed September 29, 2015
- ↑ Orlando Sentinel, "Head of veterans' charity to run against Dyer," September 1, 2015
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ The Orlando Political Observer, "Paul Paulson: “I’ll roll back the Mayor’s 17.7% tax increase”," September 19, 2015
- ↑ Orlando Sentinel, "City of Orlando: No tax increase this year," July 13, 2015
- ↑ Randy Ross campaign website, accessed September 29, 2015
- ↑ Orlando Sentinel, "Homeless in Orlando: A radical new approach to an old problem," September 30, 2014
- ↑ WFTV, "Orlando commissioner suggests church be responsible for security when feeding homeless," February 13, 2015
- ↑ randyrossorlando.com, "Official campaign website," accessed December 8, 2015
- ↑ arethaolivarez.com, "Official campaign website," accessed December 8, 2015
- ↑ Orlando Sentinel, "Orlando District 6 debate: Challengers take aim at 'invisible commissioner' Ings," September 23, 2015
- ↑ Orlando Sentinel, "Orlando District 6 debate: Challengers take aim at 'invisible commissioner' Ings," September 23, 2015
- ↑ Orlando Sentinel, "Orlando District 6 debate: Challengers take aim at 'invisible commissioner' Ings," September 23, 2015
- ↑ nathanchambers.net, "Official campaign website," accessed December 8, 2015
- ↑ City of Orlando, "District 6," accessed December 8, 2015
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