Orlando mayor faces 3 challengers in election next week
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Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer may appear on a city ballot for the last time next week.
The six-term mayor, first elected to city hall in 2003 and the longest-serving mayor in Orlando history, has said this will be his final reelection campaign.
“It’s been a little nostalgic,” Dyer, 65, said this week, reflecting on a long political career that also entailed a run in Florida’s Senate.
He’s vying for a seventh term next week, with a steep fundraising edge over opponents Sam Ings, Steve Dixon and Tony Vargas, who all say the city has slipped under Dyer’s watch.
They argue the city is riddled with violence, rising homelessness and has a dangerous downtown.
But Dyer, 65, disagrees and says there’s plenty to accomplish in another four-year term, which he hopes includes a groundbreaking for extending SunRail to Orlando International Airport, construction of a permanent memorial on the site of Pulse nightclub and making substantial progress on reshaping downtown Orlando with everything from two-way streets, more park spaces and a better mix of businesses.
“I still consider our city in its infancy in what it’s going to be ultimately,” he said. “It’s quite a bit different than it was 10 years ago, and certainly 20 years from now. We’re one of those cities that is poised to take advantage of whatever is coming.”
The mayor is elected citywide. Election Day is Tuesday with polls open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Voters in District 4 and District 6 also have contests for city commissioner. In District 4, incumbent Patty Sheehan faces Katie Koch and Randy Ross, while in District 6, incumbent Bakari Burns is taking on Rufus Hawkins.
If either a mayoral or a District 4 candidate doesn’t receive at least 50% of the vote, the top two vote-getters will head to a run-off on Dec. 5.
Orlando has a strong-mayor form of government, which means the position serves as the city’s chief executive. The mayor has sizable regional sway, holding seats on powerful boards like the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority, the Central Florida Expressway Authority and Lynx.
Dyer’s 20-year run as mayor has included the building of some of the city’s defining venues – the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts and Amway Center – as well as responding to the Pulse tragedy in 2016, and the COVID-19 pandemic, which challenged cities across the country.
The challengers for mayor say it’s time for a change at City Hall.
Vargas, who owns a fitness studio on Virginia Drive, has said the primary focus of his campaign is cleaning up downtown. He wants to double the size of the police department, and said he would address homelessness, but offered few details as to how. He said he’d be interested in changing the structure of city government to decrease the power of the mayor, and that he would better attract small businesses to the area.
“The condition of our downtown core is just horrendous and he doesn’t deserve another four years,” Vargas said.
Ings, a former city commissioner and retired police captain, has long been a critic of Dyer. He ran against him unsuccessfully in 2019, garnering about 17.5% of ballots.
He didn’t return a phone call seeking an interview this week, but in prior comments to the Sentinel, Ings blasted Dyer for rising homelessness.
“How throughout all of his 20 years do we still have this problem, and it’s growing?” Ings said. “I plan to come in with a more comprehensive approach and plan to help the homeless become self-sufficient.”
Dixon, a former state Senate candidate, wasn’t available for an interview.
Dyer said his administration has worked to address homelessness and improve the safety of downtown Orlando.
With a vote of city council earlier this year, he implemented a long-debated permit for bars and nightclubs hoping to pour liquor after midnight. The permit in part requires businesses to pay into costs for up to 30 off-duty police officers to patrol the downtown area.
Crime is down, he said, even as high-profile shootings have brought gang violence and gun violence into focus.
The city formed the Accelerate Orlando fund, using its $58 million federal allotment to invest in affordable housing and homelessness initiatives. Plans include helping fund renovations to the Coalition for the Homeless, Christian Service Center and Salvation Army campuses, as well as contributing to the conversion of the former Ambassador Hotel into affordable apartments.
“We’re making the biggest investment that probably anybody has made in the state of Florida,” Dyer said. “On the compassionate side of things, we’re investing resources into helping people lift themselves out of being homeless.”
To find your polling place, visit ocfelections.com.
