Meet the two candidates for Longboat's at-large commission seat

Longboat Key voters will see a contested commission race in March — the first since 2018. 

Deborah Murphy and Steve Branham will vie for one of the commission’s at-large seats currently held by Vice Mayor Mike Haycock, who will reach his term limit. 

Here is a closer look at the two candidates who want to join the Longboat Key town commission. 

Deborah Murphy 

Murphy will be one of the candidates seeking election to one of the town’s at-large seats. She said that one of the main reasons she’s running is to ensure the commission has more north-end representation. 

“My crux for this whole thing is, with all these north-end projects going on, there’s really too much for only two (north-end) commissioners,” Murphy said. “I really believe we need one at-large commissioner representing the Manatee County side.” 

Murphy is no stranger to the town commission, though. 

She previously served on the commission from March 2023 to December 2023 after taking over Maureen Merrigan’s seat in District 5. 

However, Murphy resigned at the end of 2023 amid the state’s Form 6 financial disclosure requirement. At the time, Murphy said the new requirement was “intrusive” and did not want to complete the form due to personal reasons. 

That led Sarah Karon to be appointed to Murphy’s seat and, since then, the Form 6 requirement has been removed.

File image

Murphy previously owned a business in Maryland, which was a multigenerational family business. She said her business experience helps her see that perspective with town issues. 

“I think it’s important to be able to relate to business and economic things that are affecting the people that live here,” Murphy said. 

Looking forward, Murphy said the town will have to keep environmental resiliency in mind.

“It’s about getting the public to be aware of their part in the whole equation and trying to look at what’s going on with maintaining their property,” Murphy said. “It’s also about the town and its strategic planning.” 

Being on the north end, another issue that Murphy is keyed into is the traffic concerns shared by many residents on the island. 

Specifically, she feels like the traffic issues when leaving through the north end should be talked about with neighboring leaders in Manatee County. 

“I think it’s working with management," Murphy said. “Whatever we can do to make traffic flow as best as we possibly can.” 

Along with the natural beauty of the island, Murphy said what makes Longboat Key unique is the home feel of the community. 

“I really think that what makes Longboat, Longboat is just the nature of the fact that it’s very much a residential community and there’s so many generations of people that pass their home to their children and their grandchildren,” Murphy said.

Steve Branham 

From Chief Financial Officer for the Coast Guard to serving on Longboat Key’s Consolidated Retirement System Board of Trustees, Branham believes his background in finance and planning will suit him well for a spot on the town commission. 

Branham served as CFO for the Coast Guard for three years, during which he managed the organization’s budget of about $10 billion.

Through other experience in the Coast Guard, he helped review planning proposals. 

Both of these experiences, he said, will translate well to what the town commission does. 

Courtesy image

On top of that, Branham has been on the town’s Consolidated Retirement System Board of Trustees since 2014 and has been the chair since his appointment to the board. 

“I’ve been deeply immersed in town issues just being the chair of the pension board,” Branham said. 

When looking at the issues that Longboat Key is facing, Branham said one of the most important is getting the canal dredging program operating in a manner fair for all residents. 

“I think we need to determine what’s equitable for those people that may benefit from it,” Branham said.

Additionally, Branham said the town’s subaqueous force main replacement will be a major, necessary infrastructure project that will be faced this year. Ensuring the town’s infrastructure is resilient and can withstand future storms is another key issue for Branham. 

Branham currently is a board member of the Longboat Key Foundation, which has been the key player in raising additional funds for the ongoing library project fostered by Sarasota County. 

This is another project he would look forward to helping with if elected to the commission, and he sees positive potential in the library.

“It’ll officially be called a library, but it’ll have functionality that will help our citizens in the form of meeting space and other areas that can be used for more traditional library capabilities in a place that’s convenient to citizens and really make it capable of fostering social interaction,” Branham said. 

Branham has been a resident of Longboat Key for about 13 years and has realized that what makes Longboat, Longboat is the beauty of the island and its ability to foster financial growth — a peaceful place free of many highrises and development. 

“We don’t want to change our current strategic view of maintaining the island and its beauty, and to foster financial growth both for our citizens and for the town,” Branham said. “I think we need to maintain the feel out here…it’s a very attractive and scenic place without too many tall buildings.”