- December 4, 2025
Updated 9:53 a.m. Aug. 19, to reflect that Will Furry has filed to run for U.S. House District 6.
Flagler County Commissioner Greg Hansen will not be running for reelection to his District 2 seat on the Flagler County Board of County Commissioners in 2026.
Hansen announced his decision at the board’s Aug. 18 meeting. Hansen has served on the board since 2017 when he was first appointed to the seat by then-Gov. Rick Scott to replace Commissioner Frank Meeker, winning his reelection campaigns in 2018 and 2022.
Hansen, who has been a vocal advocate for the importance of the beach renourishment project, said he’s got one year and two months to get the beach project funded.
“It's time for someone else,” Hansen said. “It’s been a great ride.”
Hansen told the Observer he knows several people who might run, but that he's not planning to endorse anyone. He's happy to talk to anyone who is thinking about running for the seat, though, and deliberately announced his retirement a year from the primary election.
"I wanted to do it early so that they'd have a chance for people to think about, 'Do I want to run?' And if if they want to run, it gives them time to establish a base," Hansen said. "So I think it was time for me to do it."
Both the District 2 and 4 seats are up for reelection in 2026 at the county level. District 2 encompasses Flagler County’s northeast side of the county, including the Hammock, from Beverly Beach north to the county line and east from Interstate 95 to the ocean. District 4 covers the majority of the west side of Flagler County.
Vice Chairwoman Leann Pennington thanked Hansen for his help and support over the years. She said she hopes his replacement is someone who is equally as attentive as Hansen has been.
"I know you have done a lot for your district," Pennington said. "We're going to miss you."
Pennington, who represents District 4, has already filed for reelection for her seat, according to the Flagler County Supervisors of Elections’ website. Pennington told the Observer she decided to run for reelection a year ago.
“Four years is not enough time to get what you need [done]," Pennington said.
Pennington has been a vocal advocate for District 4 projects, including the Flagler County Fairgrounds Cattleman's Hall emergency shelter, road paving and the stormwater master plan.
"We've moved a lot of mountains out west," Pennington said. "You don't see them yet but they're coming."
The deadline to qualify as a candidate for an open county or Palm Coast seat is noon on June 12 for seats decided in the August 2026 Primary Election and the November 2026 General Election. Flagler Beach, Beverly Beach and Bunnell decide their open city elections at the March 3, 2026 election.
Flagler County Commission Palm Coast City Council seats are both four-year terms. In Palm Coast, the city’s District 4 seat is up for election in 2026, as is Vice Mayor Theresa Carli Pontieri’s District 2 seat and the District 3 seat, filled by Councilman Dave Sullivan.
For Palm Coast's District 2 seat, two individuals have also filed to run for the seat, according to the Supervisor of Elections website: Antonio “Tony” Amaral Jr. of Palm Harbor Parkway in Palm Coast and Jeani Duarte of Palm Coast’s C Section.
Sullivan was appointed to the seat in April to replace Ray Stevens who resigned from the seat in February, just months after being elected to represent District 3.
Per the city’s charter, because Stevens resigned within the first half of his term, the District 3 seat was filled by appointment and will be on the 2026 ballot for election. Stevens, who resigned for health reasons, has already filed to run again for the seat.
District 4 Councilman Charles Gambaro Jr. announced in July that he would run for Florida’s 6th Congressional District to replace Rep. Randy Fine in the U.S. House of Representatives. The 6th Congressional District represents all of Flagler County and all or parts of St. Johns, Putnam, Marion, Lake, and Volusia Counties.
Fine was elected by special election to the seat after Rep. Mike Waltz resigned from the seat.
Gambaro is one of eight candidates who have already filed for the 2026 race, according to the Florida Division of Elections website.
Flagler School Board member Will Furry announced on Aug. 12 he is also running for the seat.
The candidate qualifying period for the congressional seat is 12 p.m. on Monday, April 20 – 12 p.m. Friday, April 24, 2026.
