Election days are drawing near, and there are five candidates currently in the running for a seat on the Alachua County Commission.
The District 1 Democratic candidate will be decided during the primary election, while the District 1 Republican candidate and both District 3 candidates will be put straight on the November election ballot.
This year will be the first in which voters are restricted to voting only for the commissioner that represents their district after single member districts were passed last election. This year, the county is giving voters the opportunity to reverse the decision made in the last election and move back to an at-large system for future elections.
Read a breakdown of all Alachua County Commission candidates with The Gainesville Sun’s 2024 voter guide.
More: 2024 Voter Guide: Gainesville City Commission. See how the candidates stack up
More: County commissioners move forward on effort to get at-large districts on ballot
Alachua County Commission District 1
Incumbent Mary Alford will face Dejeon Cain for the Democratic nomination in the August primary election.
Alford is a sixth generation Floridian and grew up in Florida, according to the county’s website .
“She served on the Alachua County Environmental Protection Advisory Board, the City of Gainesville Utility Advisory Board and the Alachua County Code Enforcement Board,” the website says of Alford’s time before she was elected to the commission in 2022. “She has served on the board of several local non-profit organizations, including Florida Defenders of the Environment, the Cultural Arts Coalition, and the United Way of North Central Florida.”
The former environmental engineer resigned from the commission in May 2022 after the Sun reported she lived outside her district due to personal reasons. Afterward, she managed to find a new home and qualified for her former seat in time for the election. She won reelection by 16,000 votes over incumbent Raemi Eagle-Glenn, who was appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis to the vacated seat.
Alford has raised $16,645 for her race, according to campaign finance data .
Notable contributions to Alford’s campaign include $25 from Gainesville Mayor Harvey Ward, $75 from Gainesville City Commission Candidate James Ingle, $20 from Florida House District 22 Candidate Amy Trask, $100 from Alachua County School Board member Sarah Rockwell and $25 from Gainesville City Commissioner Casey Willits.
Cain, a lifelong resident of Alachua County and the proprietor of Fortitude Security, a private security and patrol firm, according to his campaign website .
Cain ran to join the Gainesville City Commission last year and lost to Casey Willits.
His priorities include progressive energy policies, reducing violent crime and increasing affordable housing, his website says.
Cain has raised $7,150 for his run, according to campaign finance data .
Notable contributions include $50 from Alachua County Commissioner Ken Cornell and $100 from Alachua County Commissioner Marihelen Wheeler.
The Democratic candidate will go on to compete with sole Republican candidate Lizabeth Ann Doebler for the District 1 seat in November.
Doebler does not have a campaign website and has not reported any contributions to her campaign.
Alachua County Commission District 3
Incumbent Democrat Anna Prizzia will face Republican candidate Jenn Garrett in November for the District 3 race.
Prizzia worked for the St. Johns Water Management District and Alachua County Environmental Protection Department and served as the Director for the UF Office of Sustainability before being elected to the commission. She also helped found Working Food, a nonprofit that aims to create a strong local food community, according to her website .
Prizzia’s priorities include environmental protection, social justice and equity and supporting the local economy, her website says.
Prizzia has raised $37,533 for her run so far, according to campaign finance data .
Notable contributions to her campaign include $110 from Ingle, $25 from Ward, $500 from Rockwell and $100 from Gainesville City Commissioner Bryan Eastman.
Garrett has a background as an architectural historian working with the Florida Department of Transportation, according to her campaign website . Garrett is focused on improving roads and traffic as well as encouraging development while protecting environmental resources.
Garrett has raised $81,794 for her run, according to campaign finance data .
Notable contributions include $250 from State Attorney candidate Brian Kramer, $1,000 from local attorney Jeff Childers, $500 from the recently-arrested Newberry education activist Joel Searby, $350 from Alachua County School Board member Kay Abbitt and $150 from Florida House District 22 Candidate Raemi Eagle-Glenn.
Alachua County Commission District 5
Charles “Chuck” Chestnut IV is running for reelection in District 5 and remains unopposed in the election.
Chestnut has raised $6,600 for his run, according to campaign finance data .
Voters can find their precinct ahead of the August election by visiting the Alachua County Supervisor of Elections’ website .
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: 2024 Voter Guide: Alachua County Commission. See how the candidates stack up
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