Lessons learned on the Ranch during the election cycle

Now that the 2024 general election is in the bank, we can consider what lessons we have learned from the process.

1 — Make a choice when it comes to a party.

I'm not talking about beers at Ed's Tavern. I am referring to Republicans and Democrats.

When we think of grassroots efforts, Republican Carol Felts would seem to be the poster girl.

This was, indeed, a rags to riches story, about a candidate who was running simply because she was passionate, and because she cared about her hometown.

Those who follow the political scene know that Felts ran twice before for a Commission seat (in 2020 and 2022) and was simply taking up space on a ballot. Of course, she felt she was doing something more, because her effort gave her a platform in which to educate others about the plight of rural residents who live in the face of intrusive development, and about the importance of being involved and informed.

Her run in 2024 appeared to be more of the same. Her candidacy allowed her to scream about the things she holds dear, and not be led out of any gatherings by security guards.

Grassroots or not, Felts set herself up for success with one very important decision. She continued to align herself with the Republican party. Before her 2022 run, Felts said in an interview with the East County Observer that she viewed herself as an independent, but was a registered Republican.

So everything came together for her in 2024. In the primary, Felts was up against the Manatee County Republican political machine and its candidate, Steve Metallo, who raised four times more campaign funds than she did.

In the primary, though, voters rebelled against anyone associated with political advisor Anthony Pedicini, and that was Metallo. Felts scored the unexpected upset.

Republicans had to think about their selection in the primary. They couldn't just check an "R" because everyone had an "R" next to their name.

It was an emotionally charged primary, so those voting were more likely to be informed. The voters knew what they didn't want.

The general election was a different story. Felts and Jen Hamey were similar in their platforms and therefore ran very friendly campaigns void of personal attacks. But there was a key distinction. Felts was listed as a Republican and Hamey had NPA (no party affiliation) next to her name.

Unlike the emotionally charged primary, all the air had escaped from the election balloon. 

It became a Donald Trump coattails election where after checking Trump's box, the Manatee County voters checked the "Rs" right down the ballot.

It's interesting because Hamey seemed to be a very qualified candidate with her law background. Yet, she had only 5,288 votes to Felts' 35,960. It's logical to think Hamey would have stood a much better chance in the primary as a Republican light candidate.

It all led to Felts giving us the quote of the election, as told to East County Observer reporter Lesley Dwyer, “Honestly, I’m as nervous as a cat in a room full of rocking chairs (often attributed to Tennessee Ernie Ford). Now, people expect things from me. It’s easier to be an activist.”

Hamey wasn't the only one hurt by her lack of a party affiliation. So, too, was Joseph Di Bartolomeo, who had just 28% of the vote in his loss to Bob McCann. While McCann was the clear favorite, his "R" led to a landslide victory.

So candidates in the future should consider putting that "R" next to their name, even if they only have a few Republican values. The "I'm going to vote for the best candidate no matter the affiliation" just doesn't work.

2 — Raise the requirements for write-in candidates.

We have to find a way to close the loophole which locks non-party members from voting in a primary that essentially decides an office.

We received a shining example in the Supervisor of Elections race when a write-in candidate, Thomas Dell, signed up to run for that office.

Dell's inclusion meant that non-Republicans were locked out of the primary race between Scott Farrington and James Satcher. If Dell hadn't joined the race, then all registered voters would have been allowed to pick between Farrington and Satcher.

I am a proponent of not allowing non-party members to vote in a primary unless there are only one party's candidates to decide the post. But these supposed candidates are so farfetched that it is ridiculous. In the general election, Farrington earned 176,517 votes against 5,824 for Dell. 

When it came to listing campaign funds raised, Dell had raised 0.

I'm not sure of a solution to all this, but certainly, we have leaned that the topic needs discussion at the state level.

3 — We can forgive and forget.

The District 7 Commission race cemented George Kruse as one of the most popular commissioners of the past 10 years.

Kruse crushed Democrat Sari Lindroos-Valimaki 144,683-72,758 despite some personal missteps that seemed to take him out of local politics forever.

Following an accident in April 2022, Kruse was charged with DUI, a charge that eventually was dropped. Even so, his political career appeared to be over.

But Kruse forged ahead, not shying away from questions about his scrape with the law, or anything else. He launched into a common-sense approach to his votes that bucked his Republican cohorts, and spoke openly about Commission votes that did not reflect the citizen's wants and desires.

The more his fellow commissioners disliked him, the more he won public favor.