The 2020 Primary Election is history; one local race heads to run off in November

Submitted by Suanne Z. Thamm

Reporter - News Analyst

August 19, 2020

Nassau County Supervisor of Elections Vicki Cannon reports that all 26,065 ballots — mail, early and Primary Election Day — have been counted, and the results have been tabulated, with the exception of provisional ballots.  With 37.72 percent of registered voters having cast their ballots, it appears that only one race will head to a run-off in the November 3 General Election.  The other contests, some of them decided by a slim plurality, are all but official. 

Supervisor of Elections Vicki Cannon reports that there are not enough provisional ballots remaining to be counted to trigger a recount for any contest.  Florida election law does not allow a candidate to request a recount.

Three incumbents were defeated:  District 1 representatives on the County Commission (Danny Leeper) and Ocean Highway and Port Authority (Robert Sturgess); and District 4 School Board Member (Russell Johnson).

Four non-partisan candidates sought the office of County Judge, but no candidate received a majority of votes cast.  The top two vote earners — Jenny Higginbotham Barrett (29.49%) and John Cascone (25.54%) will face off in the November 3 General Election.

The Nassau County Board of County Commissioners remains an all-Republican governing body.  District 2 Commissioner Aaron Bell and District 4 Commissioner Tom Ford will be joined by three new members.  John Martin defeated incumbent District 1 Commissioner Danny Leeper with 52.25% of the votes cast.  Leeper was the only incumbent seeking re-election to the County Commission.  Replacing retiring District 3 Commissioner Pat Edwards will be Jeff Gray, with 52.07 percent of the votes cast.  Klynt Farmer with 36.06 percent of the votes cast will replace the retiring Commissioner Justin Taylor in District 5.  Taylor, who chose to run for the office of Supervisor of Elections instead of seeking re-election to the County Commission, was defeated by Janet Adkins, who garnered 34.15 percent of votes cast in a three-person race.

Incumbent School Superintendent Kathy Burns received 50.88 percent of the votes in a three-person race, handily defeating her two opponents.

Cynthia Grooms defeated incumbent School Board Member Russell Johnson in the contest for the District 4 seat with 55.9 percent of the votes cast.

The two races contested for seats on the Ocean Highway and Port Authority (OHPA) returned incumbent District 2 Commissioner Danny Fullwood to office with 51.16 percent of the votes cast, while newcomer Miriam Hill (37.5 percent) defeated incumbent District 1 Commissioner and challenger Todd Erickson.

More County voters opted for mail ballots (10,898) as opposed to early voting (7,590) or Election Day voting (7,591).  But a clear majority of County voters — more than 58 percent when combining early and Election Day voting — preferred to vote in person.

Voters in Precincts 201 (Sadler Square) and 102 (Atlantic Rec Center) preferred mail ballots strongly to in person voting.  Voters in Precincts 401 (Hilliard Middle Senior High School) and 503 (West Callahan High School) strongly favored the early voting option.  Election Day voting was the preferred choice of voters in Precincts 303 (Yulee Middle School) and 403 (Bryceville Community Center).

By wide margins, registered Democrats and those with no party affiliation voted by mail.  Republicans were fairly evenly divided among all three options for casting ballots, preferring mail ballots by a very slight edge.

For more breakdowns by precinct, dates and party, visit the Supervisor of Elections website at www.votenassau.com.  

If you plan to vote in the November 3 General Elections, make sure you are registered by October 5, 2020.  For all information on voter registration, requesting mail ballots, polling places, etc., consult the Supervisor of Elections website.