With the passage of 12:00 pm on Friday, the qualifying period for candidates in Flagler County has concluded. The Supervisor of Elections Office immediately began sifting through paperwork and petition submissions when the deadline passed, working to determine who will and won't appear on the ballot among candidates who filed to run in the 2024 elections.
Meanwhile, the City of Palm Coast was able to finalize their candidate list. Twelve candidates will appear on the ballot across three races, for Mayor and the districts 1 and 3 seats on the City Council. That will mean two if not three seats will be turning over after this year's elections, with only Mayor David Alfin running as an incumbent. City Council members Ed Danko and Nick Klufas are both running for County Commission, opening their two Council seats. Klufas was term-limited, while Danko chose to forego a shot at a second term.
The candidates appearing on the ballot for Palm Coast City Council are as follows:
Three out of the five mayoral candidates have run for office before. Incumbent David Alfin will be waging his third political campaign, following an unsuccessful City Council bid in 2020 and a victorious special election campaign in the 2021 mayoral race. Alan Lowe ran for mayor in both 2020 and 2021, and then for City Council in 2022, falling short in all three races. Cornelia Downing Manfre ran for City Council in 2020 and mayor in 2021, coming up short on both occasions. Peter Johnson and Mike Norris are running their first political campaigns in Flagler County.
In the District 1 field, two of four candidates have run before. Kathy Austrino waged her first political campaign in the 2021 special mayoral election, losing to David Alfin. Jeffery Seib ran for Flagler County Commission in 1998, advancing out of the Democratic primary but losing to Herschel King in the general election. Ty Miller and Shara Brodsky are first-time Flagler candidates.
In District 3, only one of three candidates has campaigned before. Ray Stevens ran unsuccessfully for Flagler County Sheriff in 2008 and 2012, losing to Donald Fleming both times (Fleming was then defeated in the '12 general election). His opponents, Dana 'Mark' Stancel and Andrew Werner, are running for the first time in Flagler County.
Of the candidates who filed for these seats, multiple did not qualify for the election. John Scott McDonald filed to run for mayor, but later confirmed that he'd chosen not to continue campaigning. Jamaris Dornan filed for District 1, but did not qualify for the ballot. Nicole Durenberger filed to run in District 3, but withdrew from the race before the qualifying period.
Each of these three races will appear on the August primary election ballot for Palm Coast residents. Residents of the entire city can vote in each election, regardless of if they reside in the applicable districts. If any candidate receives one vote over 50.0%, they will win their election in August. If no candidate reaches this threshold, the top two in votes will move on to a runoff election on the November general election ballot. Typically, the more candidates in a race, the less likely it is for the race to be decided in August. District 3, composed of only three candidates, likely has the best chance of avoiding a runoff.
