Republicans Smith, Neunder Lead In Sarasota County Commission Election

Updated: 8:58 a.m., Wednesday

SARASOTA COUNTY, FL — Republican Mark Smith had the lead over Democrat Fredd “Glossie” Atkins in the Sarasota County Commission District 2 race, unofficial results from the Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections office showed Wednesday as of 12:49 a.m.

In the District 4 race, unofficial results also showed GOP candidate Joseph Neunder ahead of Democrat Daniel Kuether Wednesday morning.

See the chart at the bottom of this story for live results from the Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections.

Smith wrote in a Facebook post, “Thank you for your support! I look forward to serving each and every one of you in District 2.”

“We would like to thank all of you who supported us in helping our campaign. We’re so thankful and grateful for all of your generous contributions, your time and efforts canvassing, working tirelessly behind the scenes, voting and in whatever capacity you served, thank you from the bottom of our hearts,” Atkins wrote in a Facebook post. “This is not the end because the work continues. We have to be a part of the process. We must keep serving and speaking up. Thank you and be blessed.”

Patch has reached out to Neunder and Kuether for comments.

In response to a Patch candidate survey, District 2 candidate Atkins said, “I have worked tirelessly my entire life for the betterment of the people. I worked to bring single-member districts to Sarasota city and worked to bring them to the county. I served as a city commissioner and mayor, working with a broad range of stakeholders to better our city and community. Now, this is the first real chance Democrats have at having a voice on the county commission in 50+ years. I felt that with my background of working across the aisle to get things done at the city level, I could bring that expertise to the county level, to help better everyone's lives in Sarasota.”

According to his campaign website, he served on the county commission for 18 years and as Sarasota mayor for 10.

Smith, who didn’t respond to the Patch survey, is a longtime architect whose firm, Smith Architects, P.A., is based in Siesta Key Village, according to his campaign website. He’s currently chair-elect of the Siesta Key Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors.

Among his top issues are controlling growth and improving traffic, fighting for clean air and water, and keeping taxes low.

In District 4, Kuether went head-to-head with Neunder.

For more than a decade, Kuether has worked in the real estate industries, from property management and development to real estate tech. After moving to Sarasota with his husband, he was hired as the realtor liaison for Schroeder-Manatee Ranch, the master developer of Lakewood Ranch, according to his campaign website. He now works as a UX/UI designer with a real estate tech company.

In response to Patch’s candidate survey, he promised to bring new ideas to the commission, noting, “In addition to working to solve our affordable housing crisis, I plan to address our inadequacy in caring for the environment and supporting the needs of residents.”

Neunder, who didn’t respond to the survey, has served on the Evalyn Sadlier-Jones Branch-YMCA Board of Directors, Boys & Girls Club government outreach, Sarasota County Planning Commission, City of Venice Historic Preservation Board, and the Venice City Council, according to his campaign website.

The businessman said he hopes to cut taxes, support law enforcement, work toward finding workhouse housing solutions and preserving the environment.

REAL-TIME RESULTS FOR SARASOTA COUNTY, GENERAL ELECTION

Be sure to refresh this page for the latest results. Scroll through the table below to find results for each race. Can't see the widget below? Click here for all results from Sarasota County.