Election 2022: Here are the results from races decided by Escambia and Santa Rosa voters
There were several upsets in Escambia and Santa Rosa county races on Election Day and many new faces joining the political ranks in coming days. Here's a rundown of all the news from the general election.
LIVE RESULTS: Follow along here all night for up-to-the-minute results
11 p.m. | Milton City Council: One race headed to recount, while Cusack, Hawthorne, Vance win
Eight contenders vied for the four available seats on the Milton City Council during Tuesday's general election.
The influx of seats available stems from four council members resigning over a seven-month period that began on March 18, 2021, with Sharon Holley's resignation, ending with David Richardson Jr.'s resignation on Oct. 4, 2021.
Those resignations led to four seats on the council available in tonight's election.
Full story: Milton City Council: One race headed to recount, while Compton, Hawthorne, Vance win
10:30 p.m. | Newcomer Ray Eddington beats Piech in Santa Rosa County Commission District 4 race
Ray Eddington was up at 5 a.m. on Election Day waving to anyone who might be headed to the polls.
When a reporter called mid-afternoon Tuesday, Eddington confessed he couldn't hold a sign, wave and talk on the phone at the same time, and talking to the press was the least of his priorities. He said he wasn't going to comment on anything any way, not before the votes were tabulated.
His hard work paid off, as he defeated incumbent Dave Piech to win the County Commission's District 4 seat, taking 54% of the vote. The district covers the Navarre and Holley area.
Full story: Newcomer Ray Eddington beats Piech in Santa Rosa County Commission District 4 race
9:30 p.m. | Scott Peden beats Pete Peters to win District 5 Santa Rosa County School Board seat
Former board member Scott Peden won his District 5 Santa Rosa County School Board runoff race with 58.44% of votes, beating out his opponent, newcomer Pete Peters.
With 34 of 41 precincts reporting, Peden had garnered 33,939 votes, regaining the seat he held from 2010-2018 before losing to current chairperson Wei Ueberschaer, who chose not to run for reelection.
The District 5 seat is the only 2022 schoolboard race without an incumbent running.
Full story: Scott Peden beats Pete Peters to win District 5 Santa Rosa County School Board seat
9:15 p.m. | Milton Mayor Heather Lindsay reelected to second term
Milton Mayor Heather Lindsay was reelected in Tuesday night's general election beating two challengers.
With 34 of 41 precincts reporting, Lindsay had 45% of the vote, to Mary Johnson's 31% and Dan Stillings with 24%.
Stillings, a Milton resident since 2004, is a contractor and emergency responder by trade. Mary Johnson is a former councilwoman, school board member and teacher.
Full story: Milton Mayor Heather Lindsay is reelected to second term, beating two challengers
9:05 p.m. | Escambia County voters approve extending economic development tax breaks 10 more years
Escambia County voters approved a 10-year EDATE exemption that will allow county officials to continue to offer tax breaks to encourage economic development projects.
With just three precincts left to report, county voters approved the measure Tuesday with 57,535 votes or 54.64% in support and 47,757 votes or 46.36% opposed.
EDATEs, or Economic Development Ad Valorem Tax Exemptions, were created by a 1992 state law that allows county commissions to grant tax exemptions if a business project meets specific economic development criteria.
Full story: Escambia County voters approve extending economic development tax breaks 10 more years
9: p.m. | Pensacola voters reject four charter amendments, approve council member pay raise
Pensacola voters rejected four of the five city charter amendments on Tuesday's ballot.
The only measure voters approved was an amendment that sets Pensacola City Council members' salaries by a state formula used to set county school board members' salaries.
The change will increase council members' pay by about $10,000 a year.
Full story: Pensacola voters reject four charter amendments, approve council member pay raise
8:45 p.m. | Gulf Breeze Mayor Cherry Fitch reelected, two incumbents sweep council
Incumbents ruled the day in city of Gulf Breeze elections Tuesday as Mayor Cherry Fitch was returned to the seat she has held since 2019 and council members Todd Torgersen and Randy Hebert were each rewarded with a second term in office.
The trio beat out candidates Jim Doyle, Michael Dauser and Todd Whitaker who campaigned together and were supported by the Gulf Coast Patriots, a far-right political group led by Patty Burke.
The mayor's victory came against Doyle, a political newcomer who has lived in the area since 1999, and it was all but over when the Supervisor of Elections Office posted absentee and mail-in voting numbers.
Full story: Gulf Breeze Mayor Cherry Fitch reelected, two incumbents sweep council
8:15 p.m. | State Rep. Alex Andrade wins Florida House District 2 race against Carollyn Taylor
State Rep. Alex Andrade has retained his seat as the Florida House representative for District 2.
After cruising past his two Republican challengers in the primary, former Major League Baseball player Greg Litton and U.S. Air Force veteran Jordan Karr, he defended his seat in the general election against Democrat Carollyn Rabeca Taylor.
With about 75% of votes counted, Andrade was up 62% to 38%.
Full story: State Rep. Alex Andrade wins Florida House District 2 race against Carollyn Taylor
8:05 p.m. | U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz defeats Democratic challenger Rebekah Jones, retains District 1 seat
The Associated Press has called the race for the U.S. House in Florida's 1st Congressional District for Matt Gaetz.
Gaetz easily fended off a Democratic challenge Tuesday to win a fourth term to the 1st Congressional District representing the Florida Panhandle.
Unofficial tallies shows Gaetz defeated Democrat Rebekah Jones 65% to 35% with 52% of Florida District 1 votes counted.
Full story: U.S. Rep Matt Gaetz defeats Democratic challenger Rebekah Jones, retains District 1 seat
8 p.m. | State Rep. Michelle Salzman sails to easy victory in Florida Panhandle
Incumbent Michelle Salzman has defended her state House District 1 seat, easily beating her Democratic opponent Franscine Mathis.
With 76% of votes counted, Salzman captured 70% of the vote, compared to 30 for Mathis.
This will be Salzman's second term in office, after she upset former incumbent Mike Hill in 2020. Hill challenged Salzman for the seat once again in the primary but lost heavily with Salzman taking home nearly 65% of the vote.
Full story: State Rep. Michelle Salzman sails to easy victory in Florida Panhandle
7:58 p.m. | Sen. Doug Broxson handily defeats Charlie Nichols to earn final term in District 1
State Sen. Doug Broxson cruised to an easy victory in the general election to retain his seat representing Florida's 1st District.
With 74 of 79 precincts reporting, Broxson defeated Democrat Charlie Nichols with 65% of the vote, taking 72,028 votes to Nichols' 38,477, according to unofficial results.
The upcoming term will be Broxson's last due to term limits.
Full story: Sen. Doug Broxson handily defeats Charlie Nichols to earn final term in District 1
7:55 p.m. | Charles Bare wins election to Pensacola City Council District 2 seat
Charles Bare is the next Pensacola City Council member for District 2.
Bare won the vote with 1,644 votes or 62.84%, while Char Powell received 972 votes or 37.16% with all precincts reporting.
Bare's win in the race comes after a four-way August election that forced a run off, resulting in a 25-point win over Powell on Tuesday.
Full story: Charles Bare wins election to Pensacola City Council District 2 seat
7:50 p.m. | Allison Patton defeats incumbent Ann Hill in Pensacola City Council District 6 race
Political newcomer Allison Patton unseated incumbent Pensacola City Councilwoman Ann Hill in the District 6 race.
Patton won with 1,965 votes or 54.64%, while Hill received 1,631 votes or 45.36% with all four precincts reporting.
Patton, a retired attorney who worked in the financial services sector, drew a lot of financial support from Pensacola business owners and attorneys in her bid to unseat Hill raising more than $93,145.
Full story: Allison Patton defeats incumbent Ann Hill in Pensacola City Council District 6 race
7:45 p.m. | Robert Bender wins reelection to Escambia County Commission District 4 seat
Republican Robert Bender easily fended off a challenge from Democrat Myra Van Hoose in the Escambia County Commission District 4 race on Tuesday.
Bender will win reelection with 15,225 votes or 63.82% as of 7:30 p.m. Van Hoose captured 8,632 votes or 36.18% with 14 of 19 precincts reporting.
Bender campaigned on his service for the citizens of District 4 over the last four years.
Full story: Robert Bender wins reelection to Escambia County Commission District 4 seat
7:40 p.m. | Incumbent Paul Fetsko wins District 2 seat on Escambia County school board
Incumbent Paul Fetsko has won the District 2 seat of the Escambia County School Board in Tuesday night’s runoff election.
None of the three candidates garnered over 50% of the total votes in the primary election, so incumbent Paul Fetsko and challenger Ray Guillory were forced to faceoff.
With 15 of 16 precincts reporting, Fetsko has just under 60% of the vote, 9,325, to Guillory's 6,296.
Full story: Incumbent Paul Fetsko wins District 2 seat on Escambia County school board
7:35 p.m. | Newcomer Jeremy Johnson wins SRIA board seat, beating longtime incumbent Campanella
Challenger Jeremy Johnson narrowly beat longtime incumbent Thomas Campanella for the Santa Rosa Island Authority board seat with 51.9% of the vote.
Johnson is a political newcomer, while Campanella, a dentist, was first elected to the SRIA board in 2002.
Although both are longtime residents, the two had different visions for how to improve and protect the island's future.
Full story: Newcomer Jeremy Johnson wins SRIA board seat, beating longtime incumbent Campanella
7:20 p.m. | Marco Rubio projected to beat Val Demings to win reelection to Florida Senate
Republican Sen. Marco Rubio will easily defeat Democratic Congresswoman Val Demings in the U.S. Senate race to win his third six-year term, according to projection by major TV networks.
The strong showing mirrored polls that consistently had Rubio with a solid lead over Demings, a former Orlando police chief
The two spent a combined $110 million, according to OpenSecrets.org, which tracks campaign spending nationwide.
Full story: Senate race in Florida: Marco Rubio projected to easily beat Val Demings to win re-election
7:10 p.m. | Florida governor race: Ron DeSantis wins in a landslide over Democrat Charlie Crist
Gov. Ron DeSantis easily won reelection Tuesday in a dominating performance that cemented his status as one of the GOP’s leading figures, boosted his stock as a potential presidential contender and erased the common conception of Florida as the nation’s largest swing state.
Both Fox News and CBS News called the race for DeSantis shortly after polls close.
Early vote totals indicate a landslide victory - DeSantis is on track for the largest win by a Republican governor in Florida in at least a century - that will completely reshape Florida's political landscape.
Full story: Florida governor race: Ron DeSantis wins in a landslide over Democrat Charlie Crist
5 p.m. | Republicans take big lead in voter turnout heading into rush hour
Registered Republican Party voters are leading the pack in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties as turnout near the 50% mark just before the beginning of rush hour at the polls.
At 4:40 p.m., Escambia County was a 46.76% of turnout, with 104,786 ballots cast, according to the Escambia County Supervisor of Elections Office.
Of those votes, 55% were registered Republicans, 29.86% were registered Democrats, 13.58% were non-party affiliated voters, and 1.51% were registered to other parties.
In Santa Rosa County, turnout was 46.54%, with 67,812 ballots cast, according to the Santa Rosa County Supervisor of elections office.
Republicans dominate the vote in Santa Rosa County, making up 69.49% of ballots cast. Democratic Party registered voters are narrowly edging out non-party affiliated voters with 15.93% of ballots compared to 12.97%. Members of other parties made up 1.64% of the vote.
The trend mirrors a larger trend being observed across Florida, with Democratic voters coming out in fewer numbers than Republicans across the state.
Local voter guide: Escambia, Santa Rosa County ultimate voter guide to 2022 general election
Recently: Florida primary election 2022: Pensacola has new mayor, recount in SR and runoffs galore
11:45 a.m. I Escambia, Santa Rosa turnout passes 37% mark
As of 11:40 a.m. Tuesday, turnout in both Escambia and Santa Rosa counties had passed the 37% mark.
Escambia County's turnout was 37.72%, with 84,524 ballots cast. So far, the vast majority of those ballots were early votes or mail-in ballots. The early vote accounted for 40.48% of all ballots, and mail-in votes were at 35.39%. Only 20,356 ballots were cast on Tuesday, about 24% of the total.
Escambia County Supervisor of Elections David Stafford told the News Journal the county was averaging about 4,000 voters each hour.
"People are certainly getting out to vote," Stafford said.
Turnout was similar in Santa Rosa County, with the turnout at 37.4% with 54,496 ballots cast as of 11:40 a.m.
In Santa Rosa County, 52.49% of the ballots were cast during early voting, while only 23.65% were mail-in ballots. Election Day voting accounted for about 23.79% of the total votes, with 12,966 ballots cast in the morning hours of Tuesday.
Santa Rosa County Supervisor of Elections Tappie Villane told the News Journal that polling locations have been busy with a steady flow of voters.
"We do have some lines in place, but they seem to be moving pretty quickly," Villane said.
A lot more votes will have to be cast Tuesday to reach the same level of turnout as 2018, the last midterm election. In 2018, Escambia County had a turnout of 61.45%, and Santa Rosa County had a turnout of 57.58%.
Stafford said 2018 was an unusually high turnout year for a midterm election, and the numbers appear to be tracking closer to the 2014 or 2010 midterms, which saw turnout in the 50% range.
"It's still early in the day," Stafford said.
Villane said she thought Santa Rosa County was on track to reach its 2018 level of turnout.
"All of our numbers are pretty much in line with 2018," Villane said. "If everything holds true with that, we'll be right in line with that or maybe even a little higher."
Stafford said any voters heading to the polls should be aware that their polling place may have changed since 2020 because of redistricting. Stafford said his office sent out sample ballots and new voter registration cards that list the latest polling location, and voters can always check EscambiaVotes.com to look up their polling place.
7 a.m. | Polls are open. What to know if you're voting in Escambia, Santa Rosa County
Polling locations in Florida are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Voters in line by 7 p.m. will be permitted to cast a ballot.
Escambia and Santa Rosa voters can vote at their assigned polling location. A full list is available on the Escambia and Santa Rosa county websites. You can also find sample ballots there.
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This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Election Day 2022 in Florida: Live updates from Escambia, Santa Rosa
