Janelle Irwin Taylor
Thomas Scott and Naya Young will head to a runoff next month after coming out on top in a crowded Special Election on Tuesday night.
Scott was the top vote-getter, with 27% of the vote, but because he didn’t receive more than 50% of the vote, he’ll face Young in the Oct. 28 runoff election.
Voter turnout was just 8%, with only 3,646 ballots cast. That’s more than 45,000 registered voters.
Young finished with 13% of the vote, according to unofficial results from the Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections office.
Candidates are vying to replace Gwen Henderson, who passed away unexpectedly this Summer. One of the candidates, Ariel Amirah Danley, is Henderson’s daughter. She received just 9% of the vote. Danley largely ran on a platform of honoring her mom’s legacy. Speaking at Henderson’s memorial in June, Danley said her mom “made hard work look easy,” and lamented there “are so many things” she “won’t get to finish on her own.”
Scott served as a County Commissioner from late 1996 through 2006, and ran again in 2020, ultimately losing in a crowded Democratic Primary to Gwen Myers, who continues to hold the seat. Scott also previously served on the Tampa City Council from 2007 to 2011.
Scott was the second-best fundraiser of the race, collecting nearly $52,000. He spent a decent chunk of it, with only about $21,000 left to spend heading into the runoff.
Despite being a Democrat, former Gov. Rick Scott in 2015 appointed Thomas Scott to the Florida Elections Commission.
Scott is also the senior pastor for the 34th Street Church of God. He holds an undergraduate degree from the University of North Florida in criminal justice and corrections.
Young was far from a top fundraiser in the race — she raised just shy of $19,000 — but she gathered a few notable endorsements, including from former Hillsborough County Commissioner Les Miller and his wife, Gwendolyn Miller, who served as Tampa’s first Black City Council member. She also earned support from the advocacy group Florida Rising, which works to support historically marginalized communities.
Young has been a grassroots activist since she was a teenager, canvassing for the campaign of former Democratic Sen. James Hargrett before later working to help elect former Rep. Betty Reed.
She began nonprofit work with the Tampa Heights Junior Civic Association, later rising to become the group’s Executive Director. She now serves as a consultant for the group.
Among her advocacy efforts, Young pushed for walkable green spaces, diabetes awareness, and law enforcement reform. She has an undergraduate degree in culture and media communication from the University of South Florida and a master’s degree in political science from Howard University. She also received a nonprofit management certification from the University of Tampa.
Other candidates included Audette Bruce, Juawana Colbert, Albert Cooke, Thomas DeGeorge Jr., Darrell Ashley Dudney, Alison Hewitt, Elvis Piggott, Fran Tate, Carroll West, and Melony Williams. Jose Vazquez Figueroa was a write-in candidate.
District 5 covers parts of downtown, East Tampa, Ybor City and parts of West Tampa.
