Samuel Berrien returns to Fort Meade City Commission with victory in runoff election

Samuel Berrien has returned to the Fort Meade City Commission.

Berrien captured 53.1% of the vote in Tuesday’s runoff election to defeat Donnie True, who received 46.9%, according to unofficial results from the Polk County Supervisor of Elections Office. Berrien garnered 380 votes, compared to 336 for True.

The participation rate was 26.3%, the Supervisor of Elections Office reported.

The two candidates for Seat 5 reached the runoff after neither achieved 50% in the Nov. 7 election. Berrien received 42% of the votes, followed by True with 30% and Candice Filyaw Lott with 27%.

Berrien, 44, previously joined the commission after winning a special election in 2019 to fill a vacancy. He lost in the 2021 election to Barbara Arnold, but the seat became vacant after Arnold abruptly resigned in June.

Berrien graduated from Fort Meade High School and was drafted to play baseball by the Baltimore Orioles. He attended the University of Tennessee at Martin before returning to Fort Meade. He works in operations for an energy company.

True, 67, served on the City Commission in the 1990s, including a turn as mayor. He is a building official in Bartow and has worked in city offices for four decades, with a stint in Fort Meade.

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Berrien joins newly elected Commissioner Jaret Landon Williams, who ousted Bob Elliott in the Nov. 7 election for Seat 4. Elliott had served on the City Commission for 25 years.

Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on X @garywhite13.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Samuel Berrien wins runoff for return to Fort Meade City Commission