- September 6, 2024
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Voter turnout in the 2017 runoff Sarasota City Commission election topped 22%, which topped the 19% from the last at-large election.
Martin Hyde smiles as he watches early voting results come in. He was one of three candidates in the runoff election for Sarasota City Commission.
Jane, Martin, James and Edward Hyde
Martin Hyde mingles with supporters as he awaits election results on Tuesday.
Martin Hyde watches as voting results come in. He lost a seat on the Sarasota City Commission in Tuesday’s runoff election against Hagen Brody and Jen Ahearn-Koch.
Martin Hyde checks results on his phone during his watch party at Caragiulo’s.
Incoming City Commissioner Hagen Brody welcomes supporters to his watch party at Louies Modern.
Incoming City Commissioner Hagen Brody gets early results for the Sarasota City Commission race.
John Patterson smiles after announcing early results putting incoming City Commissioner Hagen Brody in the lead for two at-large seats on the Sarasota City Commission.
Incoming City Commissioner Hagen Brody reacts to early results which showed he was in the the lead in the race for two at-large seats on the City Commission.
Outgoing City Commissioner Suzanne Atwell checks her phone while waiting for final results of the Sarasota City Commission race.
Incoming City Commissioner Hagen Brody reacts as final election results showed he, along with Jennifer Ahearn - Koch, won seats on the Sarasota City Commission.
Incoming City Commissioner Hagen Brody thanked supporters after final results showed he, along with Jennifer Ahearn - Koch, won at-large seats on the Sarasota City Commission.
Outgoing City Commissioner Suzanne Atwell congratulates incoming City Commissioner Hagen Brody on his win in the Sarasota City Commission race.
Incoming City Commissioner Hagen Brody smiles while thanking campaign supporters after final results showed he along with Jennifer Ahearn-Koch, won the two at-large seats on the City Commission.
Jen Ahearn-Koch Campaign Manager Kathy Kelley Ohlrich marks down early voting returns during an election night party at The Reserve.
Jen Ahearn-Koch awaits election results with her son Tobias Koch and her sister, Betsy Ahearn.
Jen Ahearn-Koch celebrates the election results with her sons, Oliver and Tobias Koch, and her sister, Betsy Ahearn.
Jen Ahearn-Koch celebrates the election results with her sons, Oliver and Tobias Koch, and her sister, Betsy Ahearn.
Jen Ahearn-Koch hugs her sister, Betsy Ahearn, after receiving word she won a seat on the Sarasota City Commission.
Jen Ahearn-Koch poses with her campaign manager, Kathy Kelley Ohlrich.
Jen Ahearn-Koch and Campaign Manager Kathy Kelley Ohlrich address the crowd at a Tuesday night election party.
As he celebrated his first-place finish in Tuesday’s municipal election — and his new title of city commissioner-elect — attorney Hagen Brody saw a diverse coalition of supporters rejoicing alongside him at Louies Modern.
Although Tuesday marked the end of a seven-month campaign, Brody said his election night party might also reflect the beginning of a new dynamic at City Hall.
“I look around and I see people from all walks of life — successful folks, folks that are struggling, young people, not so young people — and part of my campaign has always been about mutual respect,” Brody said. “I think it helps just getting people together in one room and seeing different points of view, to move forward on some of the lingering issues that we have had for so long.”
Brody and neighborhood leader Jen Ahearn-Koch emerged victorious in Tuesday’s election for two at-large seats on the City Commission. The two beat out small business owner Martin Hyde, the third candidate to advance to the runoff election.
Brody earned a vote from 74.6% of the 8,534 voters who participated in Tuesday’s election. Ahearn-Koch got 59.5% of the vote, and Hyde earned 36.5%. Voter turnout was 22.8%, nearly a 4% increase from the first election in March.
Brody’s campaign prioritized a leaner government focused on public safety, utilities and infrastructure. Rather than hinging on any one issue, Brody thinks the results reflect voters’ confidence in his ability to work effectively as a commissioner.
“There is no priority No. 1,” Brody said. “We have so many issues in the city to deal with, but I think above all is that the institution of the City Commission is effective, efficient and respected — and people believe again that it can achieve great things for this city.”
Ahearn-Koch, the top vote-getter in March, had a similar reaction when asked about her top priorities. She singled out transportation, development, affordable housing and homelessness as key issues the board would need to address, but said all of those issues cannot be addressed independently of one another.
“You’re not in a silo,” Ahearn-Koch said. “It’s you with other people, and I think all of these things are connected. I can’t wait to get started.”
Hyde took full responsibility for his loss Tuesday. During the runoff period, Hyde focused his criticism on Ahearn-Koch, attacking her positions on development and her willingness to consider making Sarasota a sanctuary city.
“I did what I thought was the best thing at the time,” Hyde said. “I sense that I was obviously wrong, and in the end, I have to live with that. I invested my own time, my own money and the defeat — which is a resounding one — is on me.”
Hyde is forecasting little variation from the status quo at City Hall. He said Brody and Ahearn-Koch will fill similar roles as outgoing commissioners Suzanne Atwell and Susan Chapman.
“I don’t think very much changes in Sarasota, and I don’t think the sky falls in, either,” Hyde said.
It’s easy to draw parallels between the outgoing and incoming commissioners: Atwell was a vocal supporter of Brody’s campaign; Chapman and Ahearn-Koch both served as neighborhood association leaders and Planning Board members before ascending to the commission. Atwell and Chapman made appearances at Brody and Ahearn-Koch’s election night parties, respectively.
Atwell pointed to Brody’s age as one new dynamic the 35-year-old will bring to the commission.
“He is going to bring in passion, youth and a knowledge of this community,” Atwell said.
Brody, who had no city government experience before running, hoped other residents would be encouraged to get involved.
“Procedure can be learned,” Brody said. “Substance is what we should be looking for.”
During the campaign, Ahearn-Koch was tied to a potentially significant change in how the city reviews new developments. She served on the steering committee of the resident activist group STOP, which has called for an end to administrative approval, a process that allows city staff to determine if proposed projects are compliant with zoning regulations.
Her victory Tuesday isn’t a guarantee that the commission will embrace STOP’s core issues. Kate Lowman, another STOP steering committee member, said the group planned to make its case against administrative approval once the city begins reviewing a new form-based zoning code later this year.
Although the group can anticipate a sympathetic ear in Ahearn-Koch, STOP doesn’t have a good sense of where the other commissioners may stand. In the lead-up to the election, Brody expressed opposition to the idea that administrative approval was creating problems.
“Our expectation is that we need to double down to clearly make our case,” Lowman said.
Ahearn-Koch and Brody were both optimistic that their election would lead to more significant progress during their four-year terms. Ahearn-Koch said she and Brody have gotten along fabulously, and anticipated the new commission would have substantive, civil discussions together.
“We will do that well at the table, and I think we will be very constructive,” Ahearn-Koch said.
Brody, too, was confident in his ability to work collaboratively once he officially joins the board.
“As long as we all remember that we have that core desire to see this city succeed, we can come to a lot of agreement,” he said.