With a strong base of volunteers canvassing, sign holding, calling and mailing postcards, we are thrilled to report that incumbent Councilman Ire Bethea, Sr. easily won re-election, taking 67.8% percent of the vote.
“The election is over and it’s back to work,” Bethea said in the parking lot of New St. John Baptist Church in Ocala, where his supporters gathered Tuesday night.
Bethea, former city council president, said he’s going to continue working over the next four years for the people and the city, noting Ocala is a great place to work and play and there’s still a lot to do.
When the first results were published on the Supervisor of Elections Office website, Bethea jumped to an early lead, with 1,420 votes (67.94%) to Landers’ 670 votes (32.06%.) Bethea maintained a hefty lead as more precinct reports came in through the evening.
Bethea initially took over from Mary Sue Rich, the first Black woman to serve on the city council. She was the District 2 city council representative for 24 years, and the longest-serving council member.
Our Supervisor of Elections Office records show there were 37,779 active voters on the rolls who were eligible to vote in the District 2 council race. In the three days of early voting, 59 people went to the polls. At least 1,900 voted by mail.
Special thanks to the volunteers who supported Ire throughout his successful campaign, some who are featured in our gallery below. We hope to see you during the 2024 campaign season, as we’ll have a big job ahead of us to get Democrats elected nationally, as well as in Florida!
