Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Scott PowersOctober 8, 2016

On Florida’s northern Atlantic coast from New Smyrna Beach to the Georgia state line, residents may spend a second straight evening in the dark. Massive power outages are being reported as far west as Baker and Bradford counties, after Hurricane Matthew’s journey north up the seaboard Friday. 673,019, or 8 percent, of Florida electrical customers lack power. […]

Scott PowersOctober 7, 2016

Volusia County has gone almost entirely dark, and Flagler and Indian River counties are not far behind, because of Hurricane Matthew. The latest power outage reports provided by Gov. Rick Scott‘s office show 78 percent of power customers in Volusia were without electricity as of noon, while 69 percent of Flagler customers, 67 percent of Indian […]

A.G. GancarskiMay 26, 2016

After three months of a half-cent sales tax passed to ensure the ongoing quality of St. Johns County schools, the trend is clear. Revenue is surging, month over month, a trend apparently driven in large part by tourism. March saw $1,537,660 collected, money that will go to much-needed capital projects for schools in the fast-growing […]

A.G. GancarskiApril 29, 2016

Last November, St. Johns County voters approved via referendum a 1/2 cent discretionary sales surtax for capital needs of its school district, overcoming resistance to tax hikes from the deeply conservative Northeast Florida county. Now that the dust has settled, we reached out to Beth Sweeny, Governmental Relations Coordinator for the School District, to ascertain early effects […]

Jim RosicaApril 26, 2016

More than 5,000 acres in St. Johns County have been set aside for conservation. Gov. Rick Scott and the Florida Cabinet on Tuesday approved spending nearly $6 million toward the wooded land. State officials want to add the tract to the St. Johns River Blueway Florida Forever project. The move is supported by conservationists. The North Florida Land Trust’s Jim […]

Associated PressMarch 16, 2016

A new report says St. Johns County near Jacksonville is the healthiest county in Florida, while Gadsden County in the Panhandle is ranked at the bottom. The report released Wednesday by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin compares health differences among counties. The variables used for the rankings include access to […]

A.G. GancarskiDecember 29, 2015

Everyone wants good schools, but getting people (and politicians) to pay for them is a different matter. In St. Johns County, they may have found a way forward … despite the resistance of powerful politicians and “civic leaders” who stood in their way. In November, a referendum passed resoundingly in St. Johns County. It was […]

Melissa RossNovember 16, 2015

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The election is a year away, but incumbent David Shoar has drawn a challenger in the race for St. Johns County Sheriff. Debra Maynard, former patrol deputy and crisis intervention coordinator with the department, has filed paperwork for the contest. Maynard, a Republican, has since left law enforcement and now works in construction management. She […]

Melissa RossNovember 4, 2015

The operatives on the ground in tax-averse St. Johns County are celebrating sweet, sweet victory. For the first time in 40 years, the residents of this upscale area have approved a tax increase. Voting 61 percent to 39 percent, voters approved a 10-year, half-cent sales tax to pay for new and improved school construction. With […]

Melissa RossNovember 2, 2015

St. Johns County, Florida is known far and wide for its great schools. They’re so great, in fact, that everyone is moving to the county. That’s become something of a problem. Total K-12 student enrollment in St. Johns is up about 45 percent during the past decade. In that time, the district has built 11 […]

Tag: St. Johns County
Orlando Pride

As of 6 p.m, over 673,000 Floridians still have no power

Power outage in Volusia approaches 80%; 826,000 statewide and rising

St. Johns County school sales tax revenue nears $4M in first three months

St. Johns County school sales tax pays great dividends

Rick Scott and Cabinet OK land buy in St. Johns County

Report: St. Johns County is Florida’s healthiest county

St. Johns County school tax referendum: the most overlooked NE Florida story of the year?

St. Johns County Sheriff’s race draws new candidate

A Better St. Johns PAC savors victory: “We’re ecstatic”

St. Johns County votes Tuesday on taxing explosive growth