Ballard, Rahn, Bearden In Lead: Manatee County Commission Results

Updated: 10:42 p.m., Tuesday

MANATEE COUNTY, FL — Reggie Bellamy, the Democratic incumbent seeking re-election in the Manatee County Board of County Commissioners District 2 race, trailed his Republican challenger, Amanda Ballard, Tuesday night as of 10:42 p.m., according to unofficial results from the Manatee County Supervisor of Elections office.

Meanwhile, GOP candidates Mike Rahn and Jason Bearden had a strong lead against write-in candidates in Districts 4 and 6, respectively, unofficial results showed.

And in a Manatee County School Board run-off race in District 2, unofficial results also showed Cindy Spray with a lead over Harold E. Byrd, Jr., Tuesday night.

“Thank you for believing and supporting my campaign – fought a good fight,” Byrd shared on Facebook.

In a tweet, he also called it a “sad day for Manatee County” after voters elected all Republicans to the county commission and promised that “the fight is not over.”

Patch has reached out to Bellamy, Ballard, Rahn and Bearden for comments.

Scroll to the bottom of this story for real-time results from Tuesday's elections.

Manatee County School Board

In the August primary election, the top two of three candidates advanced to Tuesday's run-off race for the Manatee County School Board District 2 seat — Byrd and Spray.

Byrd, a former Bradenton city councilor, wrote in response to Patch’s candidate questionnaire, “Over the last year it became apparent that the needs of all sectors of our community were not considered as important by the Manatee County School Board. The importance of addressing the equity gaps that exists so that all students have an equal opportunity to learn. The commitment to public services applies throughout the entire school district. It is my dream that our school system will become more inclusive with all residents and not just some. I have the education, experience and the competence to lead. We need a transition leader that will change the old ways of doing to a more professional direction for the betterment of all our citizens.”

Spray, who didn’t respond to the survey, began her career as a bookkeeper in her native Indiana before landing a job in manufacturing, working for PepsiCo in numerous departments, according to her campaign website. She later moved to Florida and worked as the bookkeeper for the Tropicana Federal Credit Union.

Manatee County Board of County Commissioners

In the Manatee County Board of County Commission races, voters had a say in Districts 2, 4 and 6.

Bellamy and Ballard vyed for the District 2 seat.

Bellamy, who didn’t respond to Patch’s survey, has served on the commission since 2018 and he sits on the Manatee County Port Authority Board.

Prior to his joining the commission, he spent more than 20 years working with youth in the county. Roles included dean at Buffalo Creek Middle School in Palmetto and serving as executive director of the Palmetto Youth Center, according to his campaign website.

He said he plans to work with law enforcement on community safety matters, advocate for workforce and veterans’ housing, and support workforce development to create new jobs in the county.

Ballard, who also didn’t respond to the survey, has spent her legal career working as an attorney in the child welfare system in Manatee County.

According to her campaign website, she supports Gov. Ron DeSantis “and will strive to bring economic opportunity and relief to the most underserved areas of Manatee County.”

She said she’s running for office “because public servants should stand up for Parents’ Rights and Individual Liberty, not trample them.”

Rahn was up against two write-in candidates, Daniel Hansen and Timothy Norwood, in District 4.

Rahn, who didn’t respond to Patch’s survey, is a local mortgage lender and a U.S. Marine Corps veteran. He’s also previously sat on the county’s planning commission.

“I believe in personal freedoms and personal liberties. Certain members on the county commission don’t believe in that. I’m a conservative Republican who believes in limited government and lower taxes,” he told the Bradenton Herald. “There has not been real representation for this district.”

According to his campaign’s Facebook page, Norwood, who didn’t response to the survey, wrote, “I am your clean waters, nature first referendum vote write-in.”

In another post, he wrote, “I used to pray for somebody to speak out, to stand up and defend our liberties. Then I realized, I am somebody.”

Patch couldn’t locate a candidate website or social media page for Hansen, who also didn’t respond to the survey.

And in District 6, Bearden also faced two write-in candidates, Robert Lesher and Manuel Antonio Llamas.

Bearden, who didn’t respond to Patch’s questionnaire, is an entrepreneur, a national nonprofit leader and a U.S. Marine veteran who served in Iraq, according to his campaign website.

“In Manatee County, we’re paying a price for failures caused by some on our Board of County Commissioners. If there’s a continued lack of leadership and preparation in place, we’ll pay an even higher price in the future,” he wrote on his website.

Campaign websites couldn’t be located for Lesher or Llamas. Llamas also didn’t respond to Patch’s survey.

REAL-TIME RESULTS FOR MANATEE COUNTY, GENERAL ELECTION

Be sure to refresh this page for the latest results. Scroll through the table below to find results for each race. Can't see the widgets below? Click here for all results from Manatee County.