In a night of conservative wins, Orange County elects progressive women

Republicans took the White House and the Senate, and several ballot measures with clear majorities did not reach Florida's 60 percent threshold to pass. But in Orange County, progressive women candidates had a very good Tuesday . 

In a shake up in the Ninth Circuit Court’s Group 15, Pine Hills attorney and mom Alicia Peyton, 43, unseated incumbent Judge Jeff Ashton, winning the runoff with more than 62 percent of the vote. 

Ashton had been elected to the bench in 2018 after a single term as state attorney and a 30-plus year career as prosecutor handling cases like the Casey Anthony murder trial. In October, however, the Judicial Qualifications Commission, which investigates complaints against judges, cited him for judicial misconduct for showing bias toward people in his courtroom and shouting at attorneys. The timing of the JQC’s filing, which questioned his fitness to serve, may have helped tip the race in Peyton’s favor. 

Reached by phone at her election watch party, Peyton, who described her win as “surreal,” said she plans to immerse herself in the “art of being a judge and figuring out … how I can best serve the people of Orange and Osceola counties.” She expressed her gratitude to the people who supported her throughout the campaign and “believe in me to create a fair and balanced bench.”   

Voters returned Democrat Monique Worrell, 49, to the Ninth Circuit’s State Attorney’s office, as she decisively beat independent Andrew Bain with more than 57 percent of the vote across Orange and Osceola counties. It was a solid repudiation of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ political maneuver to remove her last year as he campaigned for president. 

“Tonight’s results underscore the resilience of our democracy and a powerful message from the people," Worrell said in a statement released last night. "No governor’s petty political maneuvers and no amount of dark money can silence the voices of thousands who demand a fair, smart approach to justice over the failed, outdated policies of the past. 

“Despite a flood of over $2.5 million in Republican attack ads lying about my record, our community stood strong and united, declaring that enough is enough. We are ready to restore integrity and experience to the State Attorney’s office."

Worrell said she was grateful for the support her campaign received to bring back a state attorney who knows the role “isn’t about racking up convictions but about pursuing justice without bending to a political agenda.” She promised to “prioritize safety, fairness and the true values of justice.” 

The state attorney’s race attracted national attention amid allegations of election tampering, bribery, corruption and fraud. One of the Republican candidates in the Republican primary, criminal defense attorney Thomas Feiter, claimed he had been offered a judgeship or assistance running for the legislature at a later date to drop out of the race and clear a path for Bain to compete head-to-head with Worrell. Feiter refused and eventually lost the primary to criminal defense attorney Seth Hyman, who dropped out of the race shortly after. (Hyman has said he received no incentive to drop out.) Feiter filed a lawsuit against Bain, Hyman and several members of the county and state GOP, alleging a ghost candidate scheme, but it was dismissed last week. 

At the state legislative level, Democrat LaVon Bracy Davis of District 40 won in a landslide with 67 percent of the vote over Republican challenger Belinda Ford who took just under 33 percent. Ford had concentrated her election efforts on Pine Hills while District 40 also encompasses Ocoee, Lockhart, Rosemont, Clarcona, College Park, Riverside Acres and parts of Fairview Shores. 

“I am grateful for all the constituents of Florida’s 40th District that trusted in me and continuously supported me throughout my previous term, and I assure everyone that the good fight will never cease, and we will work together to grow House District 40 as I embark being back in the Florida House,” Bracy Davis said in a Tuesday night text statement sent to VoxPopuli. “Today we celebrate. Tomorrow we work!”

Democrat Karen Castor Dentel, a former state representative currently finishing out her term on the Orange County School Board, emerged victorious in the race for Supervisor of Elections. With a Masters of Education in literacy studies and a doctorate from the University of Florida, Castor Dentel, told VoxPopuli she ran for office because she felt a responsibility to ensure elections ran properly and that she wanted to expand the ways the SOE connected with voters by setting up events at schools and community gatherings.  

The SOE election was a topsy turvy one that was slated to take place in August, but took a wild turn when candidate Dan Helm sued independent candidate Cynthia Harris for improperly paying her qualifying fee. During the hearing, it was discovered that Harris forged her banking paperwork to hide that her qualifying fee was not paid from her campaign fund. The judge booted her off the ballot and moved the race to Nov. 5. Harris turned around and sued Helm for not filing paperwork to list himself as Dan on the ballot instead of Daniel. The judge later dismissed that suit. 

After a white-knuckled August primary in which she came out just two votes ahead of challenger Austin Arthur, incumbent District 1 Commissioner Nicole Wilson notched a decisive victory in the runoff to retain her seat on the Orange County Commission. Wilson received more than 52 percent of the vote, coming out 5,740 votes ahead of Arthur, despite being out-fundraised and with every elected commissioner in Winter Garden lined up against her, along with some officials in Windermere and Oakland as well. 

Arthur, a Winter Garden marketing executive was backed by developers, realtors and the tourist industry while Wilson was back by environmental groups, progressive organizations and Orange County Fire Fighters IAFF Locaal 2057.

Arthur told VoxPopuli in a text message that when it became apparent the returns weren't going his way, he phoned Wilson, before speaking to his own supporters, to concede and offer his support moving forward “in partnership.” 

“Our shared love for this community and our desire to see it prosper will always be stronger than any political disagreement,” he said in a statement sent to VoxPopuli. “I truly believe our best days lie ahead, and my work inside the community continues just as it has for years — not in opposition to the commissioner but in a welcomed partnership.” 

“Truth prevails!” Wilson told VoxPopuli in a late-night text. She said she was "so grateful that Orange County voters turned out today and that they could see through the smoke and mirrors.” 

In actuality, Arthur won the Election Day vote with 11,077 votes to Wilson’s 9,769. Wilson owes her victory to the mail-in vote, which she won by well over 7,000 ballots. 

In the lingering Orange County School Board race for District 4, veteran educator and Democrat Anne Douglas, 59, won a resounding victory over the Republican internet golf website business manager Kyle Goudy. Douglas, who took 59 percent of the vote to Goudy’s 41 percent, ran on a message of “strong public schools where everyone is welcome,” compared with Goudy who espoused anti-trans and anti-gay views, aligned himself with Christian nationalist Eric Metaxas and advocated stripping civics instruction from school curricula and arming teachers in the classrooms. 

"I am deeply honored and overjoyed to have won this election! Joining this incredible school board is a privilege, and I'm ready to roll up my sleeves and work for our students, teachers and community. I want to give my heartfelt thanks to God for His guidance throughout this journey," Douglas said in a text message to VoxPopuli. She also thanked her supporters and the people who worked on her campaign and shared their wisdom.

Florida Supreme Court Justices Meredith Sasso and Renatha Francis were retained with 62 percent and 63 percent of the vote respectively as were all of the District Court judges who were up for retention votes.

Other races

In one of the closely watched races, Democrats managed to flip House District 45, as Democrat Leonard Spencer ousted Republican State Rep. Carolina Amesty, currently under indictment for felony forgery, with more than 50 percent of the vote. Spencer ran on creating more affordable housing and improving teacher salaries.

In State Senate District 13, former State Rep. Keith Truenow, who ran a virulently anti-Asian campaign against newcomer Bowen Kou to win the Republican primary, went on to win the general election against former educator Stephanie Dukes with more than 60 percent of the vote. 

Ocoee’s Jim Moyer, EdD, won Seat 2 on the Soil and Water Conservation Board. In a text message sent to VoxPopuli, he said he wanted to thank his opponents for a competitive race and added that his goal was to raise the profile for the Board so that it’s “better known and respected.” He also aims to “establish an ongoing relationship with the cities in my district as well as the schools and their agricultural programs.”

Incumbents win 

Republican incumbent U.S. Representative Daniel Webster, 75, who has spent more than 40 years in politics, serving in the Florida House and Senate before getting swept into Congress with the 2010 Tea Party , easily won re-election in Congressional District 11 with more than 60 percent of the vote. Democrat Barbie Harden Hall who campaigned on candidate accessibility, funding rare disease research, women’s reproductive rights and affordability issues, came within 3,000 votes of Webster in Orange County but could not match his enduring popularity in the more rural Republican-leaning areas.  

In House District 39, voters re-elected Republican Doug Bankson with 52.5 percent of the vote. Bankson who’s a standard bearer for anti-LGBTQ legislation, implied in an ad that his opponent, attorney Marsha Summersill, abused the PPP loan program by taking a $13,000 loan to keep her law practice afloat during the pandemic while not mentioning that he also took a $207,000 PPP loan for the Victory Church World Outreach Center where he’s the founding pastor. 

Constitutional Amendments 

Changing school board elections from nonpartisan to party-based had support, but it didn’t have enough support to reach the 60 percent threshold, so Amendment 1 failed. 

Amendment 2, the right to fish and hunt, while already protected by Florida statute, is now protected in the Florida Constitution. The amendment passed with more than 67 percent of the vote, making Florida the 24th state to enshrine these rights in its constitution. 

One of the most controversial measures on the ballot, Amendment 3, which would have allowed adults to carry and use marijuana, failed to reach the 60 percent threshold, garnering just under 56 percent of the vote.

More than 10 million votes were cast on Amendment 4, which would have guaranteed abortion rights through about 24 weeks of pregnancy: about 6 million votes were cast in favor and 4.5 million were cast against. Florida’s Amendment 4 was one of 10 such measures on ballots across the county. But while the measure garnered more than 57 percent support — a solid majority — it still didn’t meet the 60 percent required to pass and enshrine abortion rights in the constitution. Abortion rights measures failed in two other states: Nebraska and South Dakota. Seven states passed abortion protections: New York, Maryland, Missouri, Colorado, Montana, Nevada, Arizona. 

State Rep. Anna Eskamani, one of the main drivers for getting the amendment on the ballot through Floridians Protecting Freedom, said in a statement to VoxPopuli that read in part, "Amendment 4 secured 57 percent of voter support, and though that was not enough to amend Florida’s State Constitution, it is still a historic outcome that demonstrates how the majority of Floridians reject the state’s near-total abortion ban. Amendment 4 has also earned more than 1 million votes than DeSantis did in 2022.

"The Florida Legislature and Gov. Ron DeSantis — who spent public money to campaign against Amendment 4 — should take these results as a clear rejection of their extremism and as a direct call to repeal Florida’s 6-week abortion ban.”

Amendment 5, which ties a second homestead exemption to the consumer price index, passed overwhelmingly, though city officials worried that it could introduce uncertainty into annual budgeting and may adversely affect areas with primarily residential tax bases by draining money from city coffers.

The attempt to repeal public money to campaign also failed to gain traction. Voters were fairly evenly split on whether to allow candidates for statewide office to access public money for campaigning under certain conditions or block it, with neither side getting anywhere close to the 60 percent needed to pass Amendment 6. 

Finally, all of the Orange County amendments passed, as did the half-penny sales tax to help fund public schools.