Three Longboat Key commission seats open this spring

On Oct. 1, the qualifying period began for an upcoming town commission election. 

This spring, three commission seats will be available. Those three are: two at-large seats currently held by Mike Haycock and BJ Bishop, and Sarah Karon’s District 5 seat. 

Haycock, who also serves as the town’s Vice Mayor, has reached his term limit and cannot seek reelection. Bishop and Karon are both still eligible for reelection if they choose to run again. 

Karon is currently seated as the District 5 commissioner on a 14-month term. She earned the appointment by her fellow commissioners in January after former commissioner Debbie Murphy resigned from her position. 

Murphy resigned amid the state’s new Form 6 requirement, which was a more in-depth and public form that had commissioners disclose financial information like net worth, income and assets. 

After Murphy’s resignation, the other six commissioners called for applications and chose Karon out of a pool of six applicants.

Karon then started her 14-month term until the next general election, which is this March. The candidate elected for the District 5 commission seat will then serve the remainder of Murphy’s original term, which was set to last until March 2026. 

The qualifying period for candidates starts Oct. 1 and ends at noon on Nov. 18. To qualify, candidates must secure at least 10 properly completed petitions signed by town voters and submit the completed form to the town clerk's office. 

For more information, contact the town clerk's office at 941-316-1999 or [email protected].