A full county commission will soon represent Bay County residents after voters elected local businessman Doug Moore to fill the board's vacant seat.
Former District 4 County Commissioner Keith Baker resigned following his arrest on public corruption charges over the summer. In August, Gov. Ron DeSantis ordered the county to hold a special election to fill the vacancy on the Board of County Commissioners.
On Tuesday night, unofficial election results showed Moore securing 18,183 votes - 23% of ballots cast - the largest share among the six GOP candidates. Keith Whitaker got 22% of votes or 17,181 ballots cast.
Because there were no Democratic candidates in the race, no run-off election is set to take place in January.
Moore will begin his roughly two-year term when the county commission meets on Tuesday, Nov. 17.
Moore's campaign spent $84,962, an amount greater than the other five candidates' expenditures combined. Moore also raised the most money - $107,216 - with much of his support coming from local business owners.
His campaign also received endorsements from several local elected officials, including Panama City Beach Mayor Mark Sheldon, Bay County Tax Collector Chuck Perdue and Panama City Commissioner Jenna Haligas.
Moore owns The Panhandle Group, a consulting firm. He's also served on the Bay County Chamber of Commerce's Military Affairs Committee.
On his website, he lists restoring public trust and economic development as his top priorities.
Bay County voters also overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure that gives the five-member board authority to grant property tax breaks to businesses in exchange for job-creating projects. This means private developers could pay less in taxes if they reach such an agreement with county commissioners.
The local measure passed with 72% of voters supporting it.
