- April 18, 2024
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Incumbent Palm Coast Mayor Milissa Holland won the city's mayoral race with 52.55% of the vote to challenger Alan Lowe's 47.45% with all precincts reporting as of 8 p.m. on Election Night.
Incumbent Nick Klufas won the City Council District 3 race, beating challenger Cornelia Manfre 56.71% to 43.29%.
In the Palm Coast City Council District 1 race, in which there is no incumbent, Ed Danko beat Sims Jones 60.23% to 39.77%, while Victor Barbosa won the four-way District 2 race with 38.10%. That race also has no incumbent. Barbosa's nearest competitor was Bob Coffman, with 24.58%, while David Alfin had received 20.61% and Dennis McDonald had received 16.72%.
"I am definitely, as always, very humbled by each and every vote that has been cast in my race," Holland said. "It’s really about our residents – always has been for me, always will be. I’m just very grateful and extraordinarily proud of our community for such a high voter turnout. People are engaged; they’re interested."
On the changing face of the five-person City Council, Holland said, "I look forward to working with both council-elect Danko and council-elect Barbosa. I think they bring a level of diversity that’s important for us to have important conversations in service of our residents."
Speaking on WNZF news radio, Danko reiterated his opposition to the the council's decision to use $1.5 million in taxpayer money to fund the planned MedNex health care education facility in Palm Coast. But, he added, "We will work out our differences and we will come together, and we will keep Palm Coast a beautiful, wonderful place to live, to work, to retire and to enjoy life."
Barbosa said he looks forward to reviewing the city's code enforcement issues and supporting the FCSO in providing the deputies Palm Coast needs.
"I had a lot of support from the community," Barbosa said. "It was a great win; I put in the work and I got the results for it."
Klufas thanked his supporters and volunteers.
"I’m looking forward to the next four years of working with our City Council on moving incredible projects forward such as our MedNex project," which had been championed by Holland and supported by the council, he said. "I’m also looking forward to some of my other projects that I’m championing, such as the solar electrification feasibility report, and to being the best steward of the taxpayer dollars as possible."
Klufas added that he was also grateful to his opponent for running a clean race.
In the County Commission races, Andy Dance, a Republican and former School Bard member, beat Democrat Corinne Hermle 62.68% to 37.32% in District 1.In District 5, Republican incumbent Donald O'Brien won with 64.02% of the vote in the three-way race. Denise Calderwood, a no-party-affiliation candidate, had 25.22% of the vote, while Paul Anderson, also a no-party-affiliation candidate, had 10.79% of the vote.
"I appreciate the support of the county and look forward to working hard," Dance said on WNZF radio. "I’m looking forward to the opportunity and the challenges. ... I want to work with our existing commissioners and do what we can to improve the conditions for our Flagler County citizens."
Dance said environmental concerns are a top priority for him.
"I want Flagler to grow smart, and we need to protect our environment while we do that," he said.
In the race for sheriff, incumbent Rick Staly beat challenger Larry Jones, a Democrat, 69.64% to 30.36%.
"This turnout is historic, it’s amazing," Supervisor of Elections Kaiti Lenhart said on WNZF news radio. "It went pretty well; we had some lines at a couple of our locations. ... We’re dealing with small rooms and a growing population."
Of his win, O'Brien said, "I do think it’s reflective of a lot of work over the four years. I try to show up every day, and I think that's what it’s telling us and I’m real humbled by it."
In the presidential race and in state and district-level races, Flagler consistently backed Republican candidates.
Flagler County voters favored Donald Trump over Joe Biden 59.90% to 39.18%.
Flagler County voters also supported District 6 Rep. Michael Waltz, a Republican, over challenger Clint Curtis, a Democrat, 62.23% to 37.69%.
In the state Senate District 7 race, Flagler voters favored incumbent Sen. Travis Hutson, a Republican, to Democrat Heather Hunter 60.97% to 38.96%; in the District 24 state representative race, incumbent Republican Paul Renner defeated challenger Adam Morley, a Democrat, 61.56% to 38.44%.
