State Rep. Melony Bell to run for Polk supervisor of elections, challenging Lori Edwards

Florida Rep. Melony Bell, R-Fort Meade, says she is ready to leave Tallahassee behind and serve in her home county.

Bell has filed to run next year for Polk County supervisor of elections. That means she will challenge one of the county’s most established elected officials, Lori Edwards.

The Fort Meade native said she has long desired to hold the position responsible for managing all elections in Polk County.

“I've always wanted to do this,” Bell said. “You could ask many, many people. I've always been very interested in the election process. And so, I think this is the right time.”

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Bell, 61, is not required to resign from the Legislature in order to run. She said she intends to serve through next year’s legislative session.

Bell spent 14 years on the Fort Meade City Commission before gaining election to the Polk County Commission. She served there for seven years before successfully running for the Florida House in 2018.

After easily winning re-election in 2020, Bell faced no opponent in last year’s election to earn a third term in Tallahassee. She serves as vice chair of the Education and Employment Committee.

Bell said she first considered running for supervisor of elections in 2000 but deferred to Barbara Osthoff, a friend and a veteran of the department. Edwards, 66, a former Democratic state representative from Winter Haven, won a four-person election that year and has been re-elected five times since then.

The supervisor of elections race is nonpartisan, and the winner earns a four-year term.

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“It’s going to be probably a race I've never had because she's got name recognition — and I do, too — but we'll cross that bridge when we get there,” Bell said. “But I'm up for it. I’m excited and looking for a new adventure in my life.”

The supervisor of elections oversees a staff of 27. The office administers all elections in Polk County, supports municipal elections, manages voter rolls, arranges polling places; hires and trains election workers and maintains statistics on voter registration and elections.

The office follows strict state guidelines on maintaining voter rolls and conducting and certifying elections.

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Bell said she does not know of anyone planning to run for her state House seat next year and has not endorsed a successor. She serves in District 49, which encompasses southwest Polk County, extending north to the edges of Lakeland.

Bell said serving in the state Legislature is difficult and requires traveling to Tallahassee often outside of the two-month annual session.

“This is my county, and I just feel like we get more done on the local level,” she said. “It's been an honor to serve in Tallahassee and a privilege, but it gets old being in Tallahassee. And somebody can step in my place tomorrow and do just as good a job as I've done.”

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

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Rep. Melony Bell to challenge Polk Elections Supervisor Lori Edwards