Leon County elections 1 year out; longtime commissioner not running

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) - Longtime Leon County Commissioner Kristin Dozier has announced she will not seek reelection to the District 5 seat.

Dozier was first elected in 2010; she says it was a difficult decision not to run again.

The Commissioner had two main reasons for her choice: a desire to create space for new faces and voices on the Commission, and a goal of serving the community in other ways.

“I am so profoundly grateful for the support of the residents of District 5 for the last 11 years, and they deserve a really good, strong representative,” Dozier said.

Dozier says she’s most proud of her support of non-profits and the arts community, making the first official motion to build the amphitheater at Cascades Park, and her work in developing Innovation Park.

“We’ll break ground next spring on an accelerator to help high tech businesses grow in our community,” Dozier said. “We have lost these businesses for years to Gainesville and other places, we need to capture them here to grow jobs.”

Dozier says in her final year on the Commission, she’ll focus on economic development and water quality, while continuing to ask questions.

“Really looking at our water holistically, through City and County,” she explained. “Quite frankly, I’m also very concerned about a lot of the ways we’ve been operating and kind of a reluctance to ask questions and bring in new voices, and I’m going to keep pushing for public participation and making sure that things are as transparent as possible.”

Dozier did not say what was next for her, but she added that she will be staying involved in Tallahassee and Leon County.

“Everyone knows I always have a question or a comment, and I don’t think I’ll be silent after next November!”

Two people have filed to run for Dozier’s seat.

Jeromee Kalub-Fitz Conner filed on Feb. 25, 2021, and David Hawkins filed on Dec. 30, 2018.

There are three other County Commission races coming up in 2022.

For at-large Seat 2, incumbent Nick Maddox filed on October 20th, 2021, Rudy Ferguson filed on October 18th, 2021, and Jon Coulter filed on November 1st, 2021.

In Leon County District 1, Terrance Barber filed on October 8th, 2021. Incumbent Bill Proctor has not yet filed to run again.

In Leon County District 3, incumbent Rick Minor filed on July 6th, 2021 for reelection, Joey Lamar filed on Aug. 11, 2021, and Damon Victor filed on Oct. 1, 2021.

2022 also has three City of Tallahassee races.

Incumbent Dianne Williams-Cox, currently holding Seat 5, is running unopposed as of November 12th. She filed on April 6th, 2021.

In Seat 2, incumbent Jeremy Matlow filed on March 11th, 2019 to run, and David Bellamy filed on October 1st, 2021 to run.

In Seat 4/Mayor, incumbent John Dailey is running for reelection, filing on March 1st, 2021, and Whitfield Leland III filed on February 22nd, 2021 to run.

Supervisor of Elections Mark Earley says there is no deadline to file, because a candidate can enter the qualifying period and turn in the necessary documents. However, Earley explained candidates who have not yet filed cannot collect petitions or solicit donations.

For local candidates collecting petitions, the deadline is noon on May 6, 2022.

For local candidates, the qualifying period runs from June 13 through June 18 of next year.

The 2022 primary will be on August 23rd, and the 2022 General Election will be on November 8th.

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