With no candidate reaching the 50% threshold, the special election for City Council District 5 appears poised for a second round of voting.
TAMPA, Fla. – Unofficial election results released by the Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections indicate that no candidate in the City of Tampa’s special municipal election for City Council District 5 secured the more than 50% of the vote required to win outright. The race is now widely expected to proceed to a runoff election.
According to the unofficial results posted by Supervisor of Elections Craig Latimer on Tuesday evening, Alison A. Hewitt led the field with 405 votes, accounting for 7.53% of the total. A close second was Thomas Scott, who garnered 1,457 votes, or 27.07%. Thomas DeGeorge Jr and Ariel Amirah Danley were also competitive, both receiving 522 votes and 9.70% each.
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The initial results reflect ballots cast by mail, early voting, and all Election Day precincts. The total voter turnout for the special election was approximately 12%, with 5,411 ballots cast out of 45,079 registered voters. The Supervisor of Elections’ office stated that provisional ballots and mail ballots pending signature cure were not included in the unofficial count.
The 1st Unofficial Results are scheduled to be certified on September 11, with the official results and a post-election audit to follow on September 12.
The special election was held to fill a vacancy in City Council District 5. Under the city’s election rules, if no candidate achieves a majority, the top two vote-getters will face off in a subsequent runoff election. Based on the unofficial data, a runoff between the two leading candidates appears to be the most probable outcome.
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Voters and candidates are now awaiting the final certification of the results, which will determine if a runoff is necessary and who the participating candidates will be. The official announcement of the certified results is expected on Thursday.
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