The Nov. 6 ballot includes a quartet of races of particular interest to Brevard County voters.
House District 52
Veteran state lawmaker Thad Altman (R-Indialantic) is seeking what would be his fourth full two-year term in the Florida House of Representatives since 2004.
After defeating Suntree businessman Matt Nye in the GOP primary in August, Republican nominee Altman next faces Democrat Seeta Durjin Begui, a political newcomer, in the Nov. 6 general election.
House District 52 includes southern Merritt Island and, on Brevard County’s barrier island, runs south from midway between Cocoa Beach and Satellite Beach to the Melbourne Beach area.
TOP ISSUES: Decreasing state taxes and fees; campaign-finance reform; cleaning up the Indian River Lagoon and the rest of the county’s environment; supporting public education while making private education programs more transparent when they get public aid; protecting gun rights; eliminating Common Core from schools; fighting illegal immigration.
THE CANDIDATES
Name: Thad Altman (incumbent)
Age: 62
Party: Republican
Residence: Indialantic
Occupation: President and CEO, Astronauts Memorial Foundation
Previous elected office: Florida House since 2016; Florida Senate 2008-2016; Florida House 2003-2008; Brevard County Commission 1984-1992.
Name: Seeta Begui
Age: 54
Party: Democrat
Residence: Melbourne
Occupation: Licensed practical nurse at long-term care facility; radio talk host, “Viewpoint with Seeta and Friends.”
Previous elected office: None.
House District 53
State Rep. Randy Fine (R-Palm Bay) is seeking a second term. And he didn’t have to sweat out a GOP primary this year.
But now he faces a challenge from Democratic nominee Phil Moore, who did fight a primary battle in August and defeated FiorD’Aliza A. Frias. Moore and Fine will next tangle in the Nov. 6 general election.
House District 53 takes in the southern part of Brevard County, south of U.S. 192. On the barrier island, it stretches from south of Melbourne Beach to the Sebastian Inlet.
TOP ISSUES: Cleaning up the Indian River Lagoon; helping Brevard County fix broken sewer systems; economic growth; stricter background checks for gun purchases; researching climate change; fighting county and city government corruption; researching more sustainable energy; making college more affordable and schools safer.
THE CANDIDATES
Name: Randy Fine (incumbent)
Age: 44
Party: Republican
Residence: South Beaches
Occupation: President, Fine Consulting Inc.; president, The Fine Point Group Inc.; president, FPG Partners Inc.; manager, Jayvid Holdings LLC.
Previous elected position: Florida House of Representatives District 53 since 2016.
Name: Phil Moore
Age: 44
Party: Democrat
Residence: Grant-Valkaria
Occupation: Medical device instructor
Previous elected position: None.
County District 2
Brevard County Commissioner Jim Barfield, of Merritt Island, has left an open seat as he plans to retire in November from District 2, an area that includes the county’s best-known tourist areas of Cocoa Beach and the Kennedy Space Center.
After defeating Barfield’s predecessor, Chuck Nelson, in the GOP primary, Republican nominee Bryan Lober heads to the Nov. 6 general election against Democratic nominee Victoria Mitchner, who had defeated businessman Jack Smink in her party’s primary.
On Merritt Island, District 2 extends south from NASA Boulevard to Dragon Point.
TOP ISSUES: Restoring the ailing Indian River Lagoon; upgrading sewer and stormwater systems; economic development; bringing in more vocational training agencies; building new roads and maintaining existing ones; conserving tax dollars.
THE CANDIDATES
Name: Bryan A. Lober
Age:34
Party: Republican
Occupation: Attorney
Residence: Rockledge
Previous elected office: None.
Name: Victoria Mitchner
Age: 34
Party: Democrat
Occupation: Owner, human resources consulting firm
Residence: Cocoa
Previous elected office: None.
County District 4
Brevard County Commissioner Curt Smith, the District 4 incumbent, defeated former District 3 Commissioner Trudie Infantini in the GOP primary. But Smith can’t claim a second term yet. The Republican nominee now seeks to get past a challenge from Democratic nominee Matt Fleming in the Nov. 6 general election.
On Brevard County’s barrier island, District 4 extends from the Pineda Causeway south to Eau Gallie Boulevard and includes the cities of Satellite Beach and Indian Harbor Beach.
TOP ISSUES: Restoring the Indian River Lagoon; controlling development on the St. Johns River bank; repairing broken sewer lines; hunting waste in the county budget; helping the School Board pay for more school-resource officers; economic development; tourist development; improving and maintaining roads; keeping tax rates low.
THE CANDIDATES
Name: Matt Fleming
Age: 37
Party: Democrat
Occupation: Owner, Melbourne Pressure-Washing
Residence: Satellite Beach
Previous elected office: None.
Name: Curt Smith (incumbent)
Age: 70
Party: Republican
Occupation: County commissioner;
retired small-business owner
Residence: Melbourne
Previous elected office: Brevard County Commission, elected in 2014.
