Polk elections roundup: In Lake Wales, one incumbent loses, another wins by one vote

Gary White, Lakeland Ledger
Updated ·2 min read

One incumbent fell in Lake Wales on Tuesday night, while another apparently retained his seat by a single vote.

In the race for Seat 4 of the City Commission, Carol Gillespie captured 57.4% of the vote to oust Danny Krueger, who took 42.6%. Krueger, who was seeking a second term, narrowly won the in-person vote, but Gillespie had a wide margin in voting by mail.

Carol Gillespie beat incumbent Danny Krueger in the race for Lake Wales City Commission Seat 4 with 57.4% of the vote.
Carol Gillespie beat incumbent Danny Krueger in the race for Lake Wales City Commission Seat 4 with 57.4% of the vote.

Gillespie received 1,325 votes, compared with 983 for Krueger, according to unofficial results from the Polk County Supervisor of Elections Office.

Gillespie won despite mailers and text messages promoting Krueger sent late in the campaign by Building a Brighter Future for Florida, a political group based in Jensen Beach.

In the three-way election for Seat 2, incumbent Daniel Williams had a one-vote margin over Brandon Alvarado, 939 votes to 938. Crystal Higbee received 347 votes.

In a three-way election for Seat 2, incumbent Daniel Williams had a one-vote margin over Brandon Alvarado, 939 votes to 938. The margin of victory was 0.4%, triggering an automatic recount.
In a three-way election for Seat 2, incumbent Daniel Williams had a one-vote margin over Brandon Alvarado, 939 votes to 938. The margin of victory was 0.4%, triggering an automatic recount.

Lake Wales does not require winners to exceed 50% of the vote, meaning Williams will earn a second term if the total is confirmed as official.

Elections Supervisor Lori Edwards said that an undetermined number of provisional ballots had been cast in the race. Those are ballots not counted because the voter's eligibility is in question. The deadline for voters to "cure" such ballots is Thursday at 5 p.m.

An automatic recount occurs when the difference in a race is 0.5% or less. Williams' one-vote margin translates to 0.4%, Edwards said.

Haines City

Haines City staged the most contested elections, with seven candidates vying for two seats on the City Commission.

Haines City Commission incumbent Morris West retained his seat with 52.1% of the vote Tuesday.
Haines City Commission incumbent Morris West retained his seat with 52.1% of the vote Tuesday.

Incumbent Morris West prevailed in the race for Seat 3, taking 52.1% of the vote. Joseph Burgos received 28.3% and Jayne Hall 19.6%.

In the four-way race for the open Seat 4, Kim Downing captured 32.9% of the vote, slightly more than Clarence Daniels at 30.8%, a margin of 45 votes. Carlos Surita placed third with 29.4%, followed by Buster Raggs Sr., with 6.8%.

The result means that there will be a runoff election April 30 between Downing and Daniels.

Mayor Roy Tyler, the longest-serving local commissioner in Florida, opted not to seek re-election.

Davenport

In Davenport, incumbent Jeremy Clark easily repelled a challenge from Christopher Lopez, taking 57.5% of the vote to capture the Seat 2 race. Lopez received 42.5%.

Linda Robinson handily defeated Timothy Scott Woodlee in the Seat 1 race. Robinson collected 71.4% of the vote to 28.6% for Woodlee.

Dundee: Still a town

Dundee voters were asked if they'd like to become a city rather than a town. More than 68% said they'd like to remain a town.
Dundee voters were asked if they'd like to become a city rather than a town. More than 68% said they'd like to remain a town.

Dundee held a referendum asking voters whether to change from town status to city. Voters rejected the proposal, with 68.6% voting against it and 31.4% voting in favor.

The overall participation rate was 14.9%, the Supervisor of Elections Office reported.

Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on X @garywhite13.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Polk elections roundup: Lake Wales, Haines City, Davenport and Dundee