By Dawn Krebs
dkrebs@hometownnewsol.com
ST. LUCIE COUNTY - In just a few days, the political faces in St. Lucie County will be changed as voters who haven't already taken advantage of early or absentee voting will head to their polling precincts to cast their votes.
And depending on where county residents live and what party they are registered to vote under, they could be voting on a little or a lot.
Fort Pierce residents will make two decisions that directly affect the city when they vote during this primary election.
The first is selecting who will be the next city commissioner for District 1: Duke Nelson, Reggie Sessions or Alfredia Wilder-Agnew.
The second decision will see a new person in the mayor's seat. This election, voters can choose from six candidates: Curtis Boyd, Christine Coke, Vince Gaskin, Charles Hayek, Linda Hudson or Christopher Williams.
Meanwhile, Port St. Lucie residents will choose between four people for City Council District 4 seat. Current Commissioner Jack Kelly is retiring, so voters will choose a new face from Robert Bluestone, Ron Bowen, Jolien Caraballo or Dan Kurek.
County residents who live in the Beau Rivage area have a special decision to make. The St. Lucie County neighborhood is situated so that it is surrounded by Martin County on all sides. A referendum on the Aug. 14 ballot asks those who live there if the property should be transferred to Martin County or stay in St. Lucie County.
There is one county position that everyone can vote on, regardless of party. The tax collector's race will be decided during this election, and since it is nonpartisan, all voters will choose between Chris Craft, Johnathan Ferguson and Tom Kindred.
After those contests, the other races are split into Republican and Democrat voters.
Republican voters will choose who will represent them in the county commissioner District 1 race, Bob Benton or Billy O'Dell. Whoever is chosen will move on to the November election to face incumbent Commissioner Chris Dzadovsky.
They will also choose which candidate - Bobby Hopkins, Cushman "Chip" Radebaugh or Al Rivett - will be their representative for county commissioner district 5.
In that race, the Democrats will also choose their representative from four candidates: Patrick Campion, John Culverhouse, Charles Grande and Kim Johnson.
The two candidates with the highest votes, one from each party, will face each other in November.
At the state level, Republicans and Democrats both have decision to make for state representatives. District boundaries were change when the U.S. census released updated population information.
For Democrats, the choices to represent their party in District 84 will be Adam Fetterman, Larry Lee Jr. and L. Kevin Stinnette. District 84 is formed to the west by the Florida's Turnpike and to the south by Crosstown Parkway.
Also during the Aug. 14 primary, Republicans will choose their state representative for District 55 from two candidates, Randy Johnson and Cary Pigman. District 55 is a combination of many counties, and includes western St. Lucie County.
Because of the redistricting, some polling precincts have changed locations, so be sure to double-check your new voter ID card that was mailed to every registered voter in July to find the correct precinct.
For more information, call the St. Lucie County Supervisor of Election Office at (772) 462-1500 or go online to www.slcelections.com.