BRADENTON BEACH – In the upcoming fall elections, Bradenton Beach voters will again be asked if they want to eliminate the term limits currently imposed on the city’s elected mayor and city commissioners.
The City Commission on Thursday unanimously supported on first reading an ordinance that provides ballot language for the possible elimination of term limits. The ordinance will be provided to the Supervisor of Elections Office after being adopted on second and final reading on Thursday, June 3.
The ballot language, drafted by City Attorney Ricinda Perry, says: “The current city charter provides that no person may hold the same elected office for more than three consecutive terms, or portions thereof, with each term lasting two years. Should the city amend its charter removing term limits, while maintaining the requirement that each term shall last for two years?”
Voters will be asked to vote yes or no on that question.
Bradenton Beach is the only city on Anna Maria Island that imposes term limits on its elected officials.
Due to a previously adopted charter amendment regarding commission candidate residency requirements, there was some confusion in 2016 as to whether the city’s term limits had inadvertently been eliminated by the voter-adopted residency amendment. Clarification was then sought from city voters during the 2016 elections and Bradenton Beach voters determined they wanted the existing term limits to remain in effect.
Those election results resulted in commissioners Ed Straight and Jan Vosburgh term-limiting out of office. In 2019, Vosburgh was elected to serve another two-year term and she plans to seek reelection in the fall. Mayor John Chappie’s term also expires in November and he’s expected to seek another term.
During Thursday’s meeting, Chappie said he’s remained silent on term limits, but he has and does fully support eliminating them – in part because there are now fewer full-time residents and fewer potentially interested commission candidates in the city.
Vosburgh said she fully supports eliminating term limits, too. She cited the knowledge experienced commissioners bring to the commission and the learning curve new commissioners must navigate.
Commissioner Jake Spooner is serving his third term in office, a term that expires in November. Spooner has run unopposed in all three of his commission races and has not announced whether he will seek reelection, although he has informally expressed interest in serving another term.
Perry also has informally expressed her opinion that Spooner can seek another term because some of his time in office has been served as an at-large commissioner and some has been served as the Ward 1 commissioner. This is due to city voters eliminating and later restoring the city’s four geographically determined commission wards. Perry has not yet provided a formal legal opinion on this matter, nor has the commission directed her to do so.
