POLITICS

PORT ORANGE, Fla -- Though he finished a distant second, upstart newcomer Lee Barriero garnered just enough votes to prevent Marilyn Ford from winning today's special election and forcing a June runoff to determine which of the two will take the district 1 seat that opened up with the death of Ford's cancer-stricken husband, Robert Ford back in December.

PORT ORANGE, Fla -- Marilyn Ford should be given the nod over four other candidates by the voters in a special election to succeed her late husband, Robrt Ford, for the district 1 seat he held on the Port Orange City Council because she's the most experienced and she wants to continue his conservative approach to municipal spending while ensuring essential services likes public safety are provided.

LAKE HELEN, Fla -- Sean Abshire has announced his intention to run for a seat on the Lake Helen City Commission in municipal elections to be held this year in this small rural Southwest Volusia city of 2,780 residents.

EDGEWATER, Fla -- Kimberly Yaney has won decisively with 53 percent of the votes cast in Tuesday's special election to fill a vacancy on the Edgewater City Council. 

https://www.facebook.com/paul.deering.712DELAND, Fla -- David Baldauff has pledged that if elected as GOP state committeeman by the executive committee members of the Republican Party of Volusia County that he would remain neutral in races where more than one candidate from the party is running whether it's partisan or non-partisan.

DELTONA, Fla -- Republican stalwart Zenaida Denizac has pre-qualified to run for a seat in the Florida Statehouse in 2020.

EDGEWATER, Fla. -- Marketing agency owner Kimberley Klein-Yaney is among three women seeking the District 2 City Council seat vacated by incumbent Amy Vogt earlier this month. 

1. Ashley Moody, R, Attorney General winner, 130,385 

2. Rick Scott, R, US Senate winner, 125,592

3. Jimmy Patronis, R, CFO winner, 125,852

4. Ron DeSantis, R, Governor winner 124,692

5. Matt Caldwell, R, Comm. of Agriculture winner, 122,589

6. Michael Waltz, R, CD6 winner, 122,467

7. Nancy Soderberg, D, CD6 loser,  103,626

8. Bill Nelson, D, US Senate loser, 102,624

9. Nicole "Nikki" Fried, D, Comm. of Agriculture loser, 100,702

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- It's Election Day here in Central Florida and throughout the nation. Here is a summary of the Headline Surfer endorsements, news & notes, community columns, and standalone pics & videos. Please click on hyperlinked headlines to see more of individual items.