Vero Beach Mayor Robbie Brackett wins Florida House District 34 Republican primary race
Vero Beach Mayor Robbie Brackett has defeated Sebastian resident Karen Hiltz in the GOP primary election, furthering his bid to represent a southern slice of Brevard County in the newly created Florida House District 34.
Now, Brackett will advance to a November general election showdown against Democrat Karen Greb of Sebastian.
House District 34 encompasses all of Indian River County. The Brevard communities of Barefoot Bay and Micco are included within this new district, which extends off the east side of Babcock Street and generally stretches from Valkaria Airport to the St. Sebastian River.
Florida Rep. Randy Fine, R-Palm Bay, represents this area today within House District 53.
Among Brevard voters, Brackett won 52.97% of the Republican primary ballots (1,258 votes), according to unofficial results with seven of seven precincts reporting.
Hiltz, a Sebastian resident and former school board member in Rocky Mount, Virginia, took 47.03% of the Brevard vote (1,117 votes).
Brackett commanded a wide lead in Indian River County. He secured 60.31% of the vote with 34 of 34 precincts reporting, besting Hiltz's 39.69%.
Brackett won 13,089 Indian River County votes, compared with 8,614 votes for Hiltz. Messages seeking comment were left for Brackett.
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In the two counties combined, Brackett received 59.59% of the vote and Hiltz received 40.41%.
"I think we ran a good race," Hiltz said. "And I think we did very well. We just didn't do quite enough.
"I wish Mr. Brackett well. And it was a good race," Hiltz said.
Brackett enjoys a wide fundraising lead in the House District 34 race. As of Aug. 18, he reported $161,250 in contributions, $7,612 in in-kind donations and $5,000 in loans from himself, according to state election records. He had spent $164,465 as of that date.
Hiltz reported $30,950 in contributions and $740 in in-kind donations by Aug. 18, and she had spent $57,468 on her campaign. She took out a $50,000 loan in February at the start of her campaign, and her husband, Chuck, added a $30,000 loan on July 5.
By contrast, Greb, who was unopposed in the Democratic primary, reported $250 in contributions, a $5,000 loan from herself in June, and $2,266 in expenditures as of Aug. 18.
Rick Neale is the South Brevard Watchdog Reporter at FLORIDA TODAY (for more of his stories, click here.) Contact Neale at 321-242-3638 or rneale@floridatoday.com. Twitter: @RickNeale1
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This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Florida House District 34 Republican primary won by Robbie Brackett
