Four Manatee County Commission seats, two school board races, a wide-open congressional contest and top statewide primaries all land on the same ballot Tuesday, Aug. 18. Early voting at Lakewood Ranch Town Hall and Lakewood Ranch Library closes Sunday, Aug. 16, at 6 p.m.

Florida is a closed-primary state, so voters can participate only in their own party's partisan contests. School board races are nonpartisan and appear on every ballot. In nonpartisan races, if no candidate tops 50% in the primary, the top two advance to the Nov. 3 general election. Not every voter will see every race; the Manatee County Supervisor of Elections urges residents to check their sample ballot at VoteManatee.gov before heading to the polls.

County commission

All four seats shape growth decisions across Lakewood Ranch. Nineteen candidates are competing, and campaign fundraising is roughly half of 2024 levels, according to WUSF.

District 1 (two-year term, open seat): Commissioner Carol Ann Felts died in office, drawing eight candidates. Republicans on the ballot: Leland Taylor, Elizabeth Arnold, Mark Stanoch, Adam Johnson, John Dunn and Michael Harrison. Democrat Sari Lindroos-Valimaki and write-in Jack May Jr. round out the field. Johnson is the Jan. 6 figure known as "Lectern Guy," pardoned by President Trump; he raised $14,024, with 97% from outside Manatee County.

District 2 (four-year term): Incumbent Amanda Ballard faces Edward A. Bailey Jr. in the Republican primary. Ballard has raised $60,000; Bailey, $24,500. A Democratic primary also appears on that party's ballot.

District 4 (four-year term): Incumbent Mike Rahn faces Glen Gibellina in a Republican primary. No Democrat filed, so the GOP winner takes the seat.

District 6 at-large (four-year term, open seat): Jason Bearden chose not to run again. Republicans John Calovich, Tara Poulton, Ed Ference and Tony Barrett are joined by Democrat Reggie Bellamy, a former county commissioner. Barrett was arrested on a misdemeanor domestic battery charge in June and arrested again for violating pre-trial release terms, the Bradenton Herald reported.

Growth management dominates the commission races. The contests are the first test of whether 2024's anti-development wave can repeat.

"I think the urgency has dissipated. In all fairness, I feel like we had a lot more energy in 2024 than we do in 2026," Manatee County activist Andra Griffin told WUSF on Aug. 8.

School board

District 5 (includes Lakewood Ranch High School and Braden River High): Three candidates seek the open seat left by retiring incumbent Richard Tatem: Camden Bedinghaus, Jonathan Mullis and Chantal Wilford.

District 2: Four candidates are challenging board chair Cindy Spray: James T. Golden, Sharon Jefferson, Margi Nanney and JT White. Chad Choate III is unopposed in District 4.

Congressional District 16

Rep. Vern Buchanan is retiring after 20 years. Nine candidates are running. Republicans: Sydney Gruters (Trump-endorsed, raised $971,068 through June 30), Ed Pope and Eddie Speir. Democrats: Kelly Kirschner (former Sarasota mayor), Jan Schneider, Jonathan Harris, Tamika Lyles and Glenn Pearson. NPA candidate Mark Davis is also on the ballot, WUSF reported.

Statewide races

U.S. Senate: Republican incumbent Ashley Moody faces three challengers; Democrat Alexander Vindman faces state Rep. Angie Nixon.

Governor: Republican Byron Donalds (Trump-endorsed) leads the GOP field. Democrat David Jolly leads his party's primary.

CFO and agriculture commissioner: Incumbents Blaise Ingoglia and Wilton Simpson each face primary challengers.

State legislative

State Senate District 22: James Buchanan running for the seat vacated by Joe Gruters. State House District 71: Melton Little vs. Jordan Varnadore (Republican primary). State House District 72: Incumbent Rep. Bill Conerly faces Republican John Phillips and Democrat Harvey Shifrin.

CDD seats

Several Lakewood Ranch Community Development District seats are also on the ballot, including CDD 1 (Seats 1, 3, 5), CDD 2 (Seats 4, 5), CDD 4 (Seats 1, 2, 3), CDD 5 (Seats 3, 5), CDD 6 (Seats 1, 2, 3) and the Lakewood Ranch Stewardship District Seat 3, according to the Supervisor of Elections' offices list.

How to vote

Election Day polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 18. Voters must go to their assigned precinct; there are 67 sites countywide. Early voting continues through Sunday, Aug. 16, from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. at eight locations, including Lakewood Ranch Town Hall and Lakewood Ranch Library.