Key West The Newspaper

Although Hometown acted in good faith in scheduling all candidates for United States Representative to appear at the August 8, Forum, the Board of Directors of Hometown! now believes that it is inappropriate to have Republican Carlos Curbelo and Jose Peixoto, NPA, participate in this forum when neither will be on the August 30 ballot.

After further review, the Board has elected to strictly enforce the rules regarding Hometown’s primary forums—and even though Jose Peixoto campaigned as a Republican at the “Call for Candidates,” and throughout the primary period and changed to a No Party Affiliation status almost at the end of the Qualification Period, he is no longer running as a Republican— and therefore neither Carlos Curbelo nor Jose Peixoto will be on the primary ballot. Accordingly, the Board has decided that these candidates will not participate in the August 8, Second Primary Q. and A. Forums.

We hope that both Mr. Curbelo and Mr. Peixoto appear at the August 8, forum and meet with the attending voters. Both of the candidates, however, will be invited to appear and participate in a Q. and A. Forum prior to the General Election on Nov. 8.

The August 8 Forum will feature the two candidates for the Democratic nomination for this Office: Joe Garcia and Annette Taddeo.

Thank you.

HOMETOWN! is pleased to announce its fourth event of the 2016 political season

The SECOND QUESTION AND ANSWER FORUM FOR
CERTAIN CANDIDATES ON THE AUGUST 30 BALLOT

The Studios of Key West, Second Floor
533 Eaton Street, Key West, Florida
MONDAY, August 8,2016, FROM 5:00 – 7:30 PM

Hometown’s Second Primary Question and Answer forum is three weeks before the August 30, Election and Key West and Monroe County voters will be ready to mark their absentee ballots for the candidates of their choice. At this forum, voters will have to make important judgments regarding United States Representative, Utility Board- Group 2, Monroe County School Board–Dist. 3, State Representative–Dist. 120, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Monroe County Judges.

The panelists will be Mark Songer, Board President of Last Stand; Bryan Green, Chair HARC, Director-Governing Board Lower Keys Medical center and Treasurer-Monroe County Education Foundation; Jennifer Hulse Russo-Business Attorney, Key West Citizen Editorial Board.

Hometown’s Second Primary Question and Answer forum is three weeks before the August 30, Election and Key West and Monroe County voters will be ready to mark their absentee ballots for the candidates of their choice. At this forum, voters will have to make important judgments regarding United States Representative, Utility Board- Group 2, Monroe County School Board–Dist. 3, State Representative–Dist. 120, Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Monroe County Judges.

The panelists will be Mark Songer, Board President of Last Stand; Bryan Green, Chair HARC, Director-Governing Board Lower Keys Medical center and Treasurer-Monroe County Education Foundation; Jennifer Hulse Russo-Business Attorney, Key West Citizen Editorial Board.

For further and much more complete information on all voting matters, please call the Supervisor of Elections at 305-292-3416 or visit the office at 530 Whitehead, Suite 101, Key West.

Doors open at the TSKW at 5:00 p.m. Voters will have 30 minutes to have some free hors d’oeuvres, frequent the cash bar, and meet and talk to the candidates.

The candidates and races featured at this forum are listed below: Please note that this is not the order in which the candidates will be called to the stage. Hometown will not announce the candidates’ order of being called to the stage until that night–changes in candidates’ schedules, and other matters require that flexibility in scheduling. All candidates should be at TSKW at 5:30 pm, ready to go. The fireworks begin at 5:30 PM for what is predicted to be a fast-paced question and answer set before a politically aware and knowledgeable audience.

(1) There are two (2 ) Democrats who will be on the August 30 Primary Ballot: The candidates are:

Joe Garcia (Dem.))
Annette Taddeo (Dem.)

(2) Monroe County School Board–District 3:

Ed Davidson (Incumbent)
Mindy Conn

(3) State Rep. Dist.120

Kevin Diaz (Dem.)
Daniel Horton (Dem.)

WINNER OF THE PRIMARY RUNS AGAINST INCUMBENT HOLLY RASCHEIN, INCUMBENT, (REP.) IN THE GENERAL ELECTION

(4) Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller

Amy Heavilin, Incumbent (Rep.)
Kevin Madok (Rep.)

WINNER OF THE PRIMARY FACES OFF AGAINST RON SAUNDERS (DEM.) IN THE GENERAL ELECTION

(5) Utility Board

Peter Batty (Incumbent–Group 2)
Tom Milone

(6) County Judges — 6-year term

Group 3 — Sharon Hamilton
Rob Stober

(The Incumbent is not running for re-election)

Please note that the races for the County judicial positions, Utility Board and Monroe County School Board should not be considered by the voters as primaries. These are non-partisan elections and, accordingly, these elections are held on the same date (August 30) as the Primary Election. Judicial, Utility Board and School Board candidates do not run as representatives of any political party.

Important: There are three candidates seeking the Mayoral position and three candidates running for Utility Board, Group 3. Where there are three candidates for a specific office, and if none of the three receives a majority vote (50%+1) then, the top two vote getters go to the General Election (November 8) for a run-off.

SPECIAL NOTE: At this time, there is one August 30, race between candidates of the same political party only. When that occurs, it is called a Universal election and all voters may vote in that “primary.” That race will be decided on August 30. The election involves County Commissioner-Dist. 5, (Sylvia Murphy (R) and Robert Majeska (R)).

Hometown’s objective is to encourage qualified residents to run for elected office, to provide a platform for the candidates to explain their goals, and to encourage higher levels of voter participation in the election. Membership in Hometown! for the 2016 year is $40 for individuals ($55 for households), and gives Key West and Monroe County residents and property owners a voice in how their city and county elections. Be a Friend of Hometown for $100, a Benefactor for $500 and a Political Maven Member for $1,000.

If any declared candidate has questions about the event, please call Hometown Board Member and Corporate Secretary Sheldon Davidson at 305-295-3560 or email him at [email protected]

UNABLE TO ATTEND?

For those who can not attend this Q. and A. Forum, FloridaKeys.com will be recording the event. The event will be streamed live on Hometown’s YouTube channel. You can watch the live event by going to www.hometownkeywest.com (Home page) and clicking on the LIVE ONLINE icon. The recording will remain on the YouTube channel for those who cannot watch live. The YouTube video will remain available on the same YouTube channel throughout the campaign season.

For a full list of all known candidates and their pictures as well as other campaign information regarding registration and videos of prior Hometown events, visit our website www.hometownkeywest.com. You’ll find direct links to YouTube, all of the other items and much more.

JOIN HOMETOWN

There is no charge to attend this forum. We hope, however, that you will join the majority of those interested in good government and our local elections and join Hometown in 2016. Membership in HOMETOWN! is on a calendar year basis.

To join, please visit our www.hometownkeywest.com. Then click on the “JOIN HOMETOWN” Icon at the top of the Homepage. By doing that, you can use your credit card through PayPal.