Rainford, Knight exchange barbs during political forum for Sarasota County Commission race

The marquee local election in Sarasota County is for the District 3 Sarasota County Commission seat, as two local Republican heavyweights − former Sheriff Tom Knight and incumbent Neil Rainford − have duked it out in a contentious primary.

At a forum in the Hotel Venezia in Venice hosted by South County Tiger Bay, Rainford and Knight met for their first public event together. They were joined by independent candidate Shari Thornton.

The two Republicans will face off in the August primary, and the winner will run against Thorton in November. Side-by-side on the dais, Rainford and Knight were emblematic of two different conservative styles.

Rainford began his opening statement by criticizing former President Donald Trump’s conviction in New York. He said “woke policies” of other states drove people to Sarasota and touted himself as the best candidate to fulfill Gov. Ron DeSantis’ agenda.

Although Rainford did not live in District 3 at the time, DeSantis selected him over Knight in June 2023 to fill the vacant seat created by the death of Nancy Detert. Rainford was then the secretary of the Sarasota County Republican Party and a member of the county Planning Commission. Rainford has also secured a number of endorsements from the Republican establishment in Sarasota County.

Knight, who served as Sarasota County’s sheriff for 12 years until 2020, said he decided to run because he did not like the direction of the current County Commission.

“I didn’t like that we’ve forgotten what conservative truly means, when the county’s budget went up 38% this year, even though we’re rolling in money from our (rising) property values,” Knight said in his opening statement.

Tom Knight criticizes Neil Rainford for development decisions

Knight attacked Rainford for political grandstanding and said the incumbent commissioner is in the pocket of local developers.

“I’m not going to talk to you about ‘woke’ and things like that. Those are their social issues. I’m into the reality of where we’re living here,” Knight said.

Knight positioned himself as a fiscal conservative, above the political fray. He emphasized what he said was the county’s poor strategy and financial planning. Knight admonished the County Commission − Rainford especially − for being too cozy with local developers. He also attacked the commissioner for political grandstanding over issues such as the commission's decision to defund the 211 helpline over the potential that the service would refer callers to Planned Parenthood.

The two had a few contentious exchanges during the forum, with one often handing a microphone to the other to refute their statement.

Rainford suggested DeSantis did not choose Knight because the former sheriff “knelt with Black Lives Matter” and orchestrated a “national DEI campaign.” He also accused Knight of being supported by “big developers in the governor’s office.”

Knight bristled at Rainford’s attacks and retorted that the commissioner’s voting record reflected a willingness to bend to developers’ interests. As Rainford emphasized his experience on the Planning Commission and his oversight of Resilient SRQ funding, Knight pointed out that the funding came from the federal government after Hurricane Ian, which the county cannot count on in the long term.

Independent candidate focuses on development issues

Thorton seemed happy to let the two Republicans slug it out as she delved into her campaign's core tenet − putting a stop to what she says is irresponsible overdevelopment in Sarasota County.

“What are we doing to our paradise? Are we killing the golden goose?” Thornton said.

Thornton later told the Herald-Tribune she felt the housing development in Sarasota County outpaced the recent population growth and that the area is headed toward a price crash.

Compared to Rainford’s total campaign contributions of about $250,000 and Knight’s of about $178,000, Thornton has garnered $5,000. She is also running to serve on a County Commission historically dominated by Republicans. Nevertheless, Thornton received support in the room for her laser-focused message: That county-approved zoning changes are irresponsible, leading to a decimation of green space, and threaten to ruin the character of Sarasota County.

“This rate of development is not sustainable,” Thornton said. “It’s not sustainable for our resources. It’s not sustainable for our services, and it’s not sustainable for our roads or budget.”

South County Tiger Bay President Ed Taylor told the Herald-Tribune that the forum brought a higher turnout than usual for what has been a closely watched race. Taylor’s group plans to hold events for other local elections throughout the summer.

Christian Casale covers local government for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Contact him at ccasale@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter @vanityhack

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota County Commission District 3 candidates meet in public forum