Trantalis, Roberts in runoff for Fort Lauderdale mayoral seat
A battle to lead the city of Fort Lauderdale is on, after voters Tuesday winnowed their choices for mayor and commissioners. Slow-growth candidate Dean Trantalis won the most votes in the mayor’s race, and faces a runoff with second-place finisher Bruce Roberts, the former police chief.
A fierce battle to lead the city of Fort Lauderdale is on, after voters Tuesday winnowed their choices for mayor and commissioners.
Slow-growth candidate Dean Trantalis won the most votes in the mayor’s race, and faces a runoff with secondplace finisher Bruce Roberts, the former police chief.
Trantalis, who campaigned on the city’s failure to update its infrastructure, solve traffic problems or curb over-development, carried 46.7 percent of the vote, with 600 ballots left uncounted late Tuesday night.
Roberts won 31.3 percent. Charlotte Rodstrom, a former city commissioner who was coming off three consecutive election losses, is out of the race, with 22 percent.
In the three City Commission races, only one appeared to be decided Tuesday, and two are moving to run-offs on March 13.
The results with 600 ballots still uncounted:
District 2: The five-way race to represent the central beach, Las Olas Isles and parts of downtown north of Broward
Boulevard is down to Steven Glassman and Tim Smith, if the results hold. Glassman, a slow-growth candidate and historic preservationist, took 35 percent of the vote, and Smith, a former city commissioner who emphasized redevelopment of struggling areas, 25 percent. The remainder of the vote was split among attorney George Castrataro, with 20.4 percent; Chad Maxey, a finance consultant, with 18.1 percent; and property management company owner Lester Zalewski, with 1.5 percent.
District 3: Commissioner Robert McKinzie appeared to be elected outright, based on the nearly complete returns. The contractor in northwest Fort Lauderdale won 55 percent of the vote, topping the 50 percent threshold needed to avoid a runoff. McKinzie’s campaign ads emphasized a wave of commercial development, a goal in the district for many years. Opponent and financial compliance manager Donna Guthrie’s 34.2 percent wasn’t enough to keep her in the race. In third place was Marie “Miss Peaches” Huntley, a YMCA employee and non-profit CEO, with 11 percent.
District 4: Pastor and executive leadership coach Ben Sorensen was the top vote-getter in south Fort Lauderdale, with 42 percent. Unless the final tally includes a significant number of District 4 votes, Sorensen will move to the general election to face Warren Sturman, a cardiologist, who had 32 percent of Tuesday’s nearly complete vote count. That would spell the end to the candidacy of former Dania Beach Mayor Walter Duke III, who trailed with 27 percent.
Turnout was 12.5 percent, or about 15,000 of the approximately 120,000 registered voters.
Fort Lauderdale is the only city in Broward to hold a primary election, assuring that any candidate elected to the City Commission was supported by at least 50 percent of those voting. Other cities elect the top vote-getter, no matter the percentage.
Voters at the polls Tuesday said they were motivated by concerns about development, the city’s failing water-sewer infrastructure, opposition to The Wave proposed rail system, noise from airplanes on their way to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International, and a desire to see the homeless problem solved.
“Hey, let me ask you a question,” a voter said Tuesday afternoon, approaching Sorensen at a polling place off South Andrews Avenue. “What’s your opinion of The Wave?”
When Sorensen said he opposed it, the voter said that was all he needed to hear. Nearly every candidate in Tuesday’s primary said they opposed the project.
In the mayor’s race, Peter Hassall said he just moved to the city last March and voted for Trantalis because he “wasn’t impressed with Bruce’s pro-growth at any cost. We have real problems with infrastructure and traffic.”
After the results came in, Trantalis said the community finally found a place to be heard — at the ballot box.
“The ballot box speaks volumes for what this community wants to see,” he
said. “They want to see a change in direction.”
Roberts appealed to voter Doug Coolman, who works in the development industry. He said he felt strongly that Roberts wouldn’t “say no to everything” that developers propose.
Jim Concannon, a resident who lives behind Galleria Mall and was pleased with Roberts’ opposition to a seven-tower plan there, said Roberts is “very honest and trustworthy” and approaches his votes thoughtfully.
Roberts in a text message that he’s pleased to “move on and look forward to March!”