Windes Leads in July As Candidates Raise Cash For Final Stretch of Okaloosa Primary Campaign

Okaloosa County’s primary election season will end in less than three weeks, and we will at least two new county commissioners and a new school board member.

As of Wednesday Night, almost 3,000 people across Okaloosa County had turned in their ballots by mail. Interestingly, the overwhelming number of ballots were turned in by partisans (registered Republicans and Democrats) at about 89.9%. For reference, registered Democrats and Republicans make up 74.1% of the county’s 146,413 voters. That means we may have a large number of uncomitted votes from unaffiliated Okaloosans in particular as election day draws closer.

Additionally, vote-by-mail numbers themselves are down significantly. According to Supervisor of Elections Paul Lux, “Due to law changes to the vote-by-mail process since the 2020 election, the overall number of ballots we have sent is way down from years past; so any meaningful comparison would be unreliable.” in the 2022 midterms, the supervisor’s office had 11,500 mail ballots returned. For this year’s primary, the supervisor’s office has only mailed a total of 12,400 ballots. Based on those numbers, they expect a dearth of vote-by-mail in this cycle.

Campaign Finance

July saw a surge in fundraising for one candidate while other fundraising leaders held strong. District Five Commissioner Candidate Mary Anne Windes racked up several endorsements, including the coveted endorsement of the Emerald Coast Association of Realtors and almost $30,000 in funding. she has now raised slightly less money than her opponent, Matt Gaetz-endorsed Drew Palmer ($63,515.53 to $61,300) – but outraised him this month $29,305 to $5,573.27.

Windes fueled her fundraising through July thanks to a strong outpouring of cash from two groups in her corner (according to donations). Donors from the real estate and tourism industries combined to donate about $35,000 to various campaigns.

District Five includes Destin, the eastern half of Niceville and Bluewater Bay.

Sheriff Eric Aden ($24,675), District One Incumbent Paul Mixon ($17,150), District Three Candidate Andrew Rencich ($9,650) and Sheriff’s Office Candidate Eddie Perillo ($6,600) round out the top five fundraisers for the month.

In total, $643,294.89 has been raised for these four races this election cycle. compare that to four years ago – when just three of these races were active – and candidates raised more than $700,000.

Will candidates raise that much cash? We’ve got less than three weeks until election day when we will find out.

Want more elections info? Check out midbaynews.com/elections for more!