Key West voters have selected two new city commissioners, with a third race heading to a November runoff election. The results from the Aug. 18 election were finalized within hours of polls closing, despite initial discussions about potential delays due to changes in the county’s voting infrastructure.

District II and V Seats Decided

In the race for the District II City Commission seat, Mark Rossi successfully reclaimed his former position. Rossi, who previously served a decade ago, defeated Bobi Lore by a margin of 50 votes. The District II election saw 462 voters participate. Rossi is noted as the only Republican to win a Key West race, although the city commission races are officially nonpartisan.

Chris Massicotte will occupy the District V City Commission seat. He defeated Greg Sullivan with 57% of the vote compared to Sullivan's 43%. Massicotte is taking over the seat previously held by Greg Veliz, who was appointed to fill the remainder of the term for the late Commissioner Mary Lou Hoover.

Rossi and Massicotte, along with newly elected Mayor Sam Kaufman, are scheduled to be sworn into office on Friday, Aug. 28, at city hall.

District IV Heads to Runoff

The race for the District IV City Commission seat will proceed to a runoff election on Nov. 3. Incumbent Commissioner Lissette Carey will continue to hold the seat until the runoff determines a winner. The candidates advancing to the runoff are Sarah Compton and Wayne Garcia, both Democrats. The initial results showed Compton with 42% of the vote, Garcia with 34%, and Juan Llera with 24%.

Election Season Challenges

The election period was marked by significant negative campaigning, particularly targeting Massicotte, and to a lesser extent, Kaufman and Compton. These online attacks drew the attention of Todd German, president of the nonpartisan voter education group Hometown organization.

“You had people whose hobby in life was to tear you apart,” German remarked on election night, questioning Massicotte about the smear campaign and its potential impact on future candidates.

Massicotte expressed his dismay at the intensity of the attacks. “I’ve been in professional politics for 20 years and I’ve never seen someone go that far to try to tear down an individual candidate,” he stated. Massicotte suggested that the motivation behind the tactics was simply to ensure his defeat, noting that similar tactics were used against Sam Kaufman.

Massicotte also referenced polling conducted in April by aligned Democrats in the city races. According to Massicotte, this polling indicated that “after affordability in housing, corruption was the No. 2 issue that concerned Key West voters.”

Full election results for Monroe County can be found on the official elections website. The Keys Weekly reported on the election outcomes and the associated campaign dynamics. For detailed election results, voters can visit votemonroeflkeys.gov.