There are elections scheduled this March in four local municipalities, and the deadlines to file for council seats are coming up soon.
All county municipalities were asked by the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Office to move their local elections to Tuesday, March 19, 2024, to be held concurrently with Florida’s Presidential Preference Primary. Furthermore, due to the requirements of state law, municipalities must report candidate lists to the Supervisor of Elections Office before the end of November.
Municipal elections are scheduled this cycle in the Village of Wellington, the Village of Royal Palm Beach, the Town of Loxahatchee Groves and the City of Westlake. While Royal Palm Beach and Loxahatchee Groves have seats up for election every year, Wellington and Westlake only hold elections every other year.
WELLINGTON
Three members of the Wellington Village Council are not seeking re-election to their current seats due to term limits. Each of the available seats has generated several potential candidates.
The candidate qualifying period for Wellington’s March 19 election begins at noon on Tuesday, Nov. 7 and ends at noon on Tuesday, Nov. 21.
As of now, nine candidates have filed paperwork to run for one of the three seats. Filing the initial paperwork does not guarantee a candidate will complete the rest of the requirements to qualify for the ballot.
Seat 1 is being vacated by Councilman Michael Drahos. As of this week, two candidates have filed initial paperwork to run for Seat 1: Bob Margolis and John “Jay” Carl Webber.
Seat 4 is being vacated by Vice Mayor Michael Napoleone. As of this week, four candidates have filed initial paperwork to run for Seat 4: Shelly Lariz Albright, Maria Antuña, Carol Coleman and Michael Partow.
The Mayor’s Seat is being vacated by Mayor Anne Gerwig. As of this week, three candidates have filed initial paperwork to run for mayor: Vice Mayor Michael Napoleone, Bart Novack and Kesnel Theus. Gerwig, meanwhile, is running for a seat in the Florida Legislature.
Each seat on the Wellington Village Council is for a four-year term.
To get more information about running for the Wellington Village Council, contact Village Clerk Chevelle D. Addie at (561) 791-4118 or villageclerk@wellingtonfl.gov.
ROYAL PALM BEACH
There are three seats up for election in the Village of Royal Palm Beach, with incumbents planning to seek re-election to each of them.
The available seats are Group 1, currently held by Councilman Jeff Hmara; Group 3, currently held by Councilwoman Selena Samios; and the Mayor’s Seat, currently held by Mayor Fred Pinto.
Incumbents Pinto, Hmara and Samios each confirmed to the Town-Crier that they are planning to seek new two-year terms on the council.
The candidate qualifying period for Royal Palm Beach’s March 19 election opens at 8 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 1 and closes at 5 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 9, at the office of the Village Clerk, located at 1050 Royal Palm Beach Blvd.
For more information about running for a council seat in Royal Palm Beach, contact Village Clerk Diane DiSanto at (561) 790-5102 or ddisanto@royalpalmbeachfl.gov.
LOXAHATCHEE GROVES
There are two seats up for election in the Town of Loxahatchee Groves. They are Seat 1, currently held by Councilwoman Phillis Maniglia, and Seat 3, currently held by Councilwoman Marianne Miles. Maniglia confirmed to the Town-Crier that she intends to seek re-election to a new three-year term. The Town-Crier reached out to Miles but did not get a response regarding her election plans.
The candidate qualifying period for Loxahatchee Groves’ March 19 election opens on Tuesday, Nov. 14 at noon until Tuesday, Nov. 21 at noon.
For more information about the election, contact Town Clerk Lakisha Q. Burch at (561) 793-2418 or lburch@loxahatcheegrovesfl.gov.
WESTLAKE
Two seats are up for election in the City of Westlake on Tuesday, March 19. They are Seat 1, currently held by Councilwoman Pilar Valle Ron, and Seat 3, currently held by Councilwoman Charlotte Leonard.
Both were appointed to their seats to fill vacancies.
Candidate qualifying in Westlake will be held from noon on Tuesday, Nov. 7, to noon on Tuesday, Nov. 14. Candidate packets were available as of Oct. 2. The seats are for four-year terms, expiring in March 2028.
To learn more about running for a council seat in Westlake, contact City Clerk Zoie Burgess at (561) 530-5880.
