Incumbents swept their challengers in elections Tuesday.
Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer trounced three challengers Tuesday to win a seventh full term as mayor in what he said will be his final four years as the city’s chief executive.
He’ll be joined again on City Council by commissioners Patty Sheehan and Bakari Burns, who also won new terms. Sheehan, first elected in 2000, avoided a potential run-off with 64% of ballots in her favor, according to unofficial results from the Orange County Supervisor of Elections Office. Burns received 82% of the vote, according to unofficial results. Mail-in ballot counts were partially completed at press time.
Dyer’s runaway win — he received 72% of the vote, according to unofficial results — means his run as mayor will last until 2027, marking essentially a generation as the city’s chief executive.
A few hundred supporters gathered at The Abbey in downtown Orlando awaiting the results to come in erupted in cheers when Dyer declared victory with his largest margin by percentage ever.
“It’s a win. It’s a night. It’s a moment,” said Dyer, while surrounded by his family and campaign staff. “It’s a validation of everything we’ve done.”
In Orlando, Dyer has been at the helm since first elected in 2003. It has been a transformative time for the city, which has exploded in growth. He oversaw the construction of venues like the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts and the Amway Center.
In his final term, Dyer, 65, has said he hopes to see through more defining developments like starting construction of a rail line extending the existing SunRail commuter train to Orlando International Airport and beginning a reshaping of downtown Orlando with two-way streets. More park space and a sweeping renovation to the signature Lake Eola Park are on his list, too.
In a new challenge, his administration wants to see through the construction of a permanent Pulse memorial at the site of the mass shooting in 2016 that killed 49 and wounded 53. The city purchased the land from the Poma family and another partner who owned it last month for $2 million.
“Now I’ve got 21 years of experience, so I think I can give you a damn good four years,” Dyer said at his campaign party. “So let’s celebrate tonight. … And back to work tomorrow.”
Sheehan defeated Katie Koch, a business executive, and Randy Ross, a conservative political consultant, for a seventh term on the city council. Her District 4 includes neighborhoods east and south of downtown Orlando, including many popular small business districts like Mills-50, The Milk District and Curry Ford West.
Burns, who also works as the CEO of the Healthcare Center for the Homeless, won a second term representing District 6 neighborhoods in west and southwest Orlando. He defeated Rufus Hawkins, a businessman, and has advocated for infrastructure improvements in the district, as well as educational and youth programming at neighborhood centers in his district.
Voters trickled into the Dover Shores Neighborhood Center Tuesday afternoon. Dale and Jean Smith, residents of the city for more than 30 years, said they vote in every election, and learned about Dixon, one of Dyer’s opponents, in a Facebook post and thought he was the best alternative.
“I think Buddy Dyer has been in too long,” Dale Smith said after casting his ballot.
Another voter, who declined to give his name, said he voted for Dyer because he thought the incumbent was doing a good job.
“You know what you’re getting,” he said.
In Oviedo, Mayor Megan Sladek was elected to a third term after holding off challenges from two political opponents, in a race dominated by the issues of controlling growth and easing traffic congestion in this Seminole County city.
Sladek, an attorney and real estate broker, received more than 54% of the votes, according to unofficial results from the Seminole Supervisor of Elections Office. Challengers Brady Duke received nearly 41%, and Judith Dolores Smith garnered just over 5%.
LIVE Election Results for Orange County, Lake County, Seminole County, Florida House 35
In her campaign, Sladek advocated for the city to provide more multimodal options for transportation — such as additional trails and pathways for walkers — bicyclists and golf carts, as a way of easing traffic congestion.
“Looking forward to serving the people of Oviedo for another two years,” Sladek said at her campaign party. “I’m very excited.”
Her opponents also agreed that Oviedo has faced challenges with its recent growth, including traffic snarls. Duke, a minister and small business owner, said the city should build or widen more roads. Smith, a former business owner and retired social worker, advocated for keeping Oviedo’s “small town” charm.
Oviedo voters also strongly rejected — by more than 63% of the votes cast — a ballot referendum asking whether the city should borrow $35.5 million to help build a new police headquarters to replace the current station.
Oviedo’s mayor is elected at large and serves a two-year term. The position pays $14,401 a year.
In Lake Mary, voters reelected accountant George Duryea to another two-year term on the city commission after he held off a challenge from Kristina Renteria, making him one of the longest serving elected officials in Florida.
Duryea received nearly 53% of the votes cast, according to unofficial results.
Duryea was first elected in 1987. He did not respond to several requests to talk about his campaign, and he did not have a campaign website.
In her campaign, Renteria said the city should have more “aggressive testing” of its drinking water. She also wants the city to provide its water customers in their monthly bills a list of all the chemicals found in their water.
Correction: A previous version of the story misstated who the city purchased Pulse nightclub from.
