Note: This story has been updated to correct the result of the Lake Helen mayor’s election and the final tally of the Lake Helen Zone 3 commission race.
The off-year election was on for voters in two Volusia County cities, with Lake Helen voters electing two members of their City Commission and New Smyrna Beach voters taking a crack at seven City Charter ballot questions. Here is a rundown of the 2025 municipal elections in Volusia County.
Lake Helen elects Roger Eckert as mayor
Lake Helen Vice Mayor Roger Eckert narrowly defeated the incumbent, Vernon Burton.
In voting completed on Nov. 4, Eckert earned 50.7%, or 348 votes to Eckert’s 339.
Burton had served 14 years on the City Commission.
Meanwhile, Sean Abshire soundly defeated Zone 3 Commissioner Lynda Donato by a better than 2-to-1 margin, with the final tally being 473 to 212.
New Smyrna Beach votes no to City Commission salary hikes
In New Smyrna Beach, voters decided a series of seven questions that potentially would amend the City Charter.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Lake Helen elects mayor as New Smyrna Beach voters kill City Commission pay increase
Reporting by Mark Harper, Daytona Beach News-Journal / The Daytona Beach News-Journal
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