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Early voting begins for Okaloosa County municipal elections

Okaloosa voters can cast early ballots through March 7 for municipal elections in Fort Walton Beach, Niceville, and Laurel Hill at two designated locations.

Early voting for municipal elections in Fort Walton Beach, Niceville, and Laurel Hill begins today, giving residents the chance to cast their ballots ahead of the March 11 Election Day.

Voters can participate in early voting from March 3-7, with polls open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. each day, according to the Okaloosa County Supervisor of Elections Office.

Two locations are available for early voting:

  • Shalimar Office: 1250 Eglin Pkwy, Suite 103, Shalimar
  • Crestview Office: 302 N Wilson St, Suite 102, Crestview

Voters can preview their sample ballots on the Supervisor of Elections website before heading to the polls.

Fort Walton Beach

The municipal election will determine three seats on the Fort Walton Beach City Council. Seven candidates are competing for these positions:

  • Brandon Bishop
  • Logan Browning
  • Jason Harwell
  • Benjamin Merrell
  • Debi “Debra” Riley
  • Travis Smith (incumbent)
  • Sonya Faison-Vazquez

Laurel Hill

Voters in Laurel Hill will decide between three candidates:

  • Mike Blizzard
  • Shawn D. Cogan
  • Amanda Rosen

Niceville

Niceville voters will consider two charter referenda:

  1. A proposal to eliminate the city residency requirement for the City Clerk. Currently, Section 6.11 of the Niceville City Charter requires the City Clerk to reside within city limits. The amendment would remove this requirement, which is described as “financially burdensome and unnecessary for the proper function of this office.”
  2. A proposal to grant the Mayor authority to vote to break tie votes regarding City Council vacancies. The amendment to Section 3.07(c) would establish a process to resolve potential tie votes when filling council vacancies.

For voters unable to participate in early voting, Election Day is Tuesday, March 11, 2025.

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Community Comments

“While I agree that our Island should have better upkeep, I would task the Tourist Development Council, with this. Eglin doesn’t advertise for tourists that I know of. Eglin does...”
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“Getting on and off the island will be as bad or worse.”
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“All I ask is that if Eglin is going to restrict access (after all these years) and are advertising that the property is Eglin AFB property that they take measures...”
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“Thank you for this article. For once, thought is being given to the Terns. Seems like all I hear is ‘boost tourism’. Our native flora and fauna deserve respect. Again,...”
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“It sounds like the developer is only interested in participating if it serves there monetary interest without regard to Destin leadership or community concerns. Why would the city allow this...”
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“Destin does not need more commercialization. Go to Panama City for that. If it can’t be stopped, please say the new construction will not look like the cheesy towers already...”
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“Whatever the plan turns out to be, it needs to tie into the new Brooks bridge, increase downtown parking and allow for much more pedestrian traffic maybe even closing down...”
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“The current building is an eye sore and looks more like Panama Beaches. Too tall already. Let the citizens vote on it! No!!!”
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“https://www.getthecoast.com/destin-council-seeks-to-close-dangerous-us-highway-98-intersection-after-fatal-crash/ I can only imagine there will be more like this if Destin gets anymore congested.”
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“I honestly wish the citizens of Destin could vote on this debacle. I bet very few if any would agree to this continued commercialization, on a ridiculous level, of what...”
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