Naples voters made their choices to return Ted Blankenship to the Naples City Council and elected newcomers John Krol and Scott Schultz in the city’s Feb. 3 election.
Three seats on the council were at stake with eight candidates who share similar concerns about improving resiliency against flooding, finding ways to balance growth and address traffic, and all the while trying to maintain the city’s small-town character.
The voter turnout was low at 38.1% with 6,262 ballots cast. There are 16,451 eligible voters in the city.
Blankenship received 2,959 votes for 16.9% of the vote, clearly ahead of the other candidates.
Krol garnered 2,381 votes for 13.6% and Schultz collected 2,364 votes for 13.5% of the votes.
Also on the ballot was current council member Ray Christman who collected 2,260 votes for 12.9% of ballots cast.
Also running was lifelong Naples resident Dan Barone who received 2,234 votes for 12.8% of the vote.
Other candidates were Sally Petersen who garnered 2,081 votes for 11.9%; John Langley with 1,637 votes for 9.4% and former city council member Penny Taylor with 1,565 votes for 9% of the ballots cast.
What did the winners say?
Blankenship, 60, served on the city council from 2020 to 2024 and lost a 2024 bid for mayor during that election.
“I am incredibly honored and humbled by the trust voters have placed in me,” Blankenship said after the win. “I am excited to serve our great city and residents again and am ready to get to work. I’m deeply grateful for my family and everyone who supported me in the election.”
In a question-and-answer column, he said the city needs to advance water quality and resiliency initiatives, along with preserving Naples’ character.
He calls for the city to be more focused on government efficiency, and vows to leverage his independent financial expertise and be resident focused.
Schultz, 68, is a 21-year resident of the city. His background is “extensive private-sector leadership experience” and has worked on issues involving responsible growth, flooding, resiliency, and infrastructure.
In a question-and-answer column with the Naples Daily News, Schultz said he ran because Naples is at a turning point, where growth pressures, flooding, and state overreach threaten the character and livability of our city.
“I’m honored and grateful to the people of Naples for placing their trust in me,” Schultz said in a statement after his win. “This campaign was never about politics, it was about protecting the Naples we love. I ran to be a voice for residents, neighborhoods, and future generations, and that’s exactly how I will serve.”
He currently serves on the City of Naples Planning Advisory Board and previously served as chairman of the Collier County Coastal Storm Risk Management Ad Hoc Advisory Committee, working alongside county leaders, residents, and experts to address flooding and storm resiliency challenges.
“This election showed that Naples residents want thoughtful leadership, not politics as usual,” Schultz said. “I look forward to working collaboratively with my fellow council members, city staff, and our community to deliver real solutions and preserve the character that makes Naples special.”
Krol, 64, said it was a long day but important for him to be out at all the polling sites because he didn’t expect the mail-in-ballots to help him.
“Today was an important day for me to perform,” he said when reached by phone following the preliminary results showing him as having won a seat.
“I think it’s a great. It’s a victory to the citizens. It’s their council. I feel really good about the other members that have gone on too. I feel we’re going to be able to accomplish a lot.”
Krol said he was proud of his low-cost campaign focused on grass roots and social media.
“I did a lot of things different,” he said. “I had a ground game, grass roots, social media and that put me over.”
Why three seats?
Council member Beth Petrunoff and Terry Hutchison decided not to seek re-election.
The newly elected council members will get sworn in Feb. 18.
Council members serve four-year terms on the seven-member board. The elections are nonpartisan.
What did voters say at the polls?
Joe Migliara, a Naples resident and frequent speaker at Naples City Council and Naples Airport Board of Commissioners meetings, was at St. Ann Catholic Church campaigning for Petersen. Wearing a T-shirt expressing his support and carrying campaign signs, Migliara said he planned to go to other precincts throughout the day.
“She’s a fresh independent voice. I think she’s come out the strongest in terms of defending the codes,” Migliara said. A big concern for residents is how often the City Council approves variances to its development code to allow new construction. “I think the top issue is overdevelopment and she’s been the strongest advocate for making sure those variances are rare and appropriate only.”
Petersen also voted at the St. Ann precinct and said she had been there since 7 a.m. She said she was hopeful of a good turnout.
Ed and Julie Hyer voted at St. John’s Episcopal Church also based on the candidates’ position on growth. They declined to say for whom they voted.
“Growth is unavoidable,” Ed Hyer said. “We live in a vibrant, expanding city, town, community and managing that growth effectively is a huge challenge and there’s a lot of different ways to think about that. And so, we want it managed carefully, thoughtfully and in a way that preserves the charm of Naples. It’s a very tall order. It’s difficult. There are different perspectives on how you do that, and so, how those for who we voted probably aligned to how we want to see that done.”
Also, at St. John’s were Rosemarie and Phillip Ciolfi, who said overdevelopment was their greatest concern.
To get the city back to the way it was; it’s just too much building,” Rosemarie Ciolfi said. The couple has lived in Naples since 1997. “Taxes. I want life to be like it was in the early 2000s. It seems like we’re just way too crowded. They’re overbuilding. This town is overbuilding.”
“Stop the building,” said Rosemarie Ciolfi, who said she voted for Barone, Christman and Schultz.
Liz Freeman is a health care reporter. Reach her by emailing lfreeman@naplesnews.com
J. Kyle Foster is a senior growth & development reporter for The News-Press & Naples Daily News. Reach her by emailing jfoster1@usatodayco.com.
Please support local community journalism and stay informed about Southwest Florida news by subscribing to The News-Press and Naples Daily News; download the free News-Press or Naples Daily News app, and sign up for daily briefing email newsletter, food & dining and growth & development newsletters here and here.
This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Who did voters elect for three seats to Naples City Council? Results
Reporting by Liz Freeman and J. Kyle Foster, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News / Naples Daily News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
