Columbia County
Primary Day for Some -
Election Day for Others
Posted August 19, 2020 08:10 am
Photos: Columbia County Observer
COLUMBIA COUNTY, FL – Yesterday was primary day for some and election day for others. The unsung heroes of the day were the folks in the Columbia County Supervisor of Elections office who ran a smooth election without any hitches.
The Most Important Race: State Attorney
The
most important race in Columbia County yesterday
was a race which spread over 7
counties in North Florida, the race for State
Attorney.
After the unfortunate resignation of former State Attorney Jeff Siegmeister, a state attorney whose foundation was the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and not being influenced by good ole' boy politicians, the 7 county position became available.
The winner yesterday was John Durrett (photo), who has been running the Lake City Office for some time. Mr. Durrett has also shown himself to be a defender of the Constitution and people's rights.
Tina Seifert, the other candidate in the State Attorney race, was a former Assistant State Attorney in the district.
Running for office is a tough hack for women in North Florida (Columbia County has no woman Commissioner and the Lake City City Council is about to lose its only Councilwoman).
County 5 – District 3: a real horse race
The race for County Commission District 3 was a real toss up between the first and second place finishers.
Eight year incumbent Sylvester "Bucky" Nash was given a run for his money by first time candidate Robby Hollingsworth. Nothing of substance was brought up during the first round of the campaign and Mr. Hollingsworth was thought to be one of the three candidates sponsored by the sheriff in his quest to build a monument to himself called a new $40 mil jail.
While there are issues at the old jail, many believe that a new jail is the extreme. This should be a hot topic during the rest of the campaign as Commissioner Nash voted not to build a new jail.
First time candidate Robby Hollingsworth may need more than a million dollar smile to prevail in November.
Columbia County Tax Collector
As many expected, Kyle Keen swept the Republican primary for Tax Collector.
Amy Overstreet gave it a college try, but with the retiring Marsha Moore splitting some of the vote, it was a long shot that in the end was impossible to overcome.
No one that this reporter spoke with seemed to know why Ms. Moore was in the race.
In November, Kyle Keen will be running against Libertarian Davie Parish.
City Council District 13
The
race to replace Councilwoman Melinda Moses, who
chose not to defend her seat, was almost won by
first time candidate Todd Sampson.
Mr. Sampson fell 6% short of having 50% plus 1 and in November he will be running against the Lake City Reporter pick James Crenshaw, a bar tender at a local sports bar.
TDC marketing pro Alden Rosner gave the race his best shot, but came in a close third.
Mr. Sampson is a businessman and an accountant.
County 5 District 5
Brandon Beil took on incumbent commissioner and politician Tim Murphy.
It is not easy to beat incumbents.
City Council District 12
Incumbent Jake Hill was given a run for is money by Noah Walker.
The vote was close, but in the end Mr. Hill led across the finish line.
Columbia County School Board
Veteran School Board member Keith Hudson has seen generations pass through the Columbia County School District and is the longest sitting school board member in Florida.
Nobody expected him to lose to challenger Michael Jenkins.
County 5 – District 1
Challenger Kyle Green for a brief time seemed to have a chance of upsetting incumbent Ronald Williams.
His poor choices during his campaign had him painted as a wing-nut by some, a label he could not shake.
Commissioner Williams, a County Commissioner since 1982, will be serving another term.
