Florida GOP Primary and Pinellas election results are in
Tuesday was Election Day in Florida, with the Presidential Preference Primary and Municipal elections on the ballot.
Donald Trump won Tuesday’s Republican presidential primary, a vote the former president was expected to carry easily after all his major challengers, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, dropped out. Trump secured a significant 81.2% of the votes in Florida and 75% of the votes in Pinellas County.
In the Pinellas County Municipal election, significant conservative turnout played a pivotal role in unseating two City Council members and electing new officials. Lawyer Bruce Rector secured victory in a heated race for Clearwater mayor, defeating City Council member Kathleen Beckman with nearly 63% of the vote. Rector will now take over the role from Brian Aungst Sr., the former Clearwater Mayor (1999 to 2004) who stepped in as interim Mayor after Frank Hibbard abruptly resigned last year.
Additionally, Lealman Fire Capt. Ryan Cotton won the three-way race for Seat 2, unseating council member Mark Bunker, a prominent critic of the Church of Scientology. Voters also elected small business owner Mike Mannino for Seat 3. Mannino earned endorsements from the chamber of commerce, police and fire employee unions, and his campaign donations more than doubled that of his challengers, freelance journalist Jared Leone and Clearwater neighborhoods coordinator Javante Scott.
Below are the latest results for the 2024 municipal elections in Pinellas County, including races in Clearwater, Oldsmar, Pinellas Park, Safety Harbor and more.
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City of Clearwater
Mayor – Seat 1
| Bruce Rector | 14,385 votes | 62.44% |
| Kathleen Beckman | 8,654 votes | 37.56% |
Councilmember – Seat 2
| Ryan Cotton | 9,505 votes | 42.13% |
| Mark Bunker | 8,906 votes | 39.47% |
| Mike Mastruserio | 4,151 votes | 18.4% |
Councilmember – Seat 3
| Michael ‘Mike’ Mannino | 14,027 votes | 62.47% |
| Javante Scott | 5,439 votes | 24.22% |
| Jared Leone | 2,987 votes | 13.3% |
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City of Gulfport
Councilmember – Ward 1
| April Thanos | 2,084 votes | 61.13% |
| Tom Bixler | 1,325 votes | 38.87% |
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City of Indian Rocks Beach
Commissioner
| Janet Wilson | 592 votes | 43.72% |
| Jude Bond | 447 votes | 33.01% |
| Suzanne Gibson | 315 votes | 23.26% |
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Town of Indian Shores
Mayor
| Diantha Schear | 266 votes | 57.45% |
| Michael A. ‘Mike’ Petruccelli | 197 votes | 45.55% |
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Town of Kenneth City
Mayor
| Megan Zemaitis | 555 votes | 71.89% |
| Robert J. Howell | 217 votes | 28.11% |
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City of Oldsmar
Council Member – Seat 1
| Steve Graber | 1,242 votes | 54.26% |
| Vincent Albanese | 1,047 votes | 45.74% |
Council Member – Seat 3
| Andrew Knapp | 1,334 votes | 58.03% |
| Valerie Tatarzewski | 965 votes | 41.97% |
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City of Pinellas Park
City Council – Seat 3
| Ricky Butler | 3,350 votes | 53.32% |
| Mike Haworth | 2,933 votes | 46.68% |
City Council – Seat 4
| Tim Caddell | 3,475 votes | 56.34% |
| Joanne Dauphin | 2,693 votes | 43.66% |
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City of Safety Harbor
Commissioner – Seat 1
| Nancy J. Besore | 2,007 votes | 51.87% |
| Scott Long | 1,862 votes | 48.13% |
Commissioner – Seat 2
| Jacob Burnett | 2,150 votes | 56.11% |
| Hayley Ann Rae | 1,682 votes | 43.89% |
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City of Treasure Island
City Commissioner – District 4
| Arden D. Dickey | 290 votes | 65.32% |
| Richard David Harris | 154 votes | 34.68% |
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You can view the full results from Tuesday’s election, including charter amendments from the City of Belleair Beach, Clearwater, Madeira Beach, Pinellas Park and Safety Harbor, on the Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections website. The Primary Election will be Aug. 20 and the General Election is Nov. 5. Click here for more information about registration and early voting.
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Doris Lovering
March 20, 2024at7:18 pm
How many registered Republicans are there per county? How many registered Republicans voted? How many voted for each of the candidates listed? Saying that Trump won 75% of the votes in Pinellas is not a clear picture. If there are 285,000 registered Republicans in Pinellas county, but only 100 of them voted. That would mean he got 75 votes or 75% of the votes. That is not great. The story should carry the same breakdown as the local races.