HomeElectionsHousing and transit groups to question candidates, weigh endorsements ahead of Aug. 18 election

Housing and transit groups to question candidates, weigh endorsements ahead of Aug. 18 election

July 10, 2026

Press release from Gainesville is for People and Gainesville Citizens for Active Transportation

Updated at 8 p.m. to add an additional candidate.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Candidates across five local races will take the stage on Monday, July 13, to answer directly to two advocacy organizations whose endorsements could shape the August 18 election. Gainesville is for People and Gainesville Citizens for Active Transportation will co-host the free, public forum from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the LifeSouth Community Blood Center, 1221 NW 13th Street, Gainesville, FL 32601. It is open to the public, and no RSVP is required. 

The forum carries real stakes. Following the event, each organization will separately weigh endorsements in the City and County Commission races, based on candidates’ forum answers, written questionnaire responses, and platforms. For candidates competing in crowded fields, including a four-way County Commission District 2 race and a three-way City Commission District 2 race, a strong showing could prove decisive.

The evening will unfold in two parts. City Commission candidates take questions first, then County Commission candidates, with both organizations pressing every candidate on housing and transportation.

At the forum, voters will hear how candidates plan to respond to the impacts of growth in our region. The University of Florida’s Bureau of Economic and Business Research projects the Gainesville metro area could add close to 140,000 residents by 2050 at the high end of its range. More residents means more demand for homes people can afford and more pressure on our county’s shared commitment to safe walking, biking, and transit by 2040. 

“Where people can live and what they can afford touches everything else in their lives,” said Jason Sanchez of Gainesville is for People. “We teamed up with GCAT because housing and transportation go hand in hand, and voters deserve to hear how candidates would tackle both.”

“How safely and easily people can get around shapes this community as much as where they live,” said Kristen Young of Gainesville Citizens for Active Transportation. “This forum gives voters the chance to hear directly from the candidates on the issues that shape daily life.”

The confirmed candidates are:

  • County Commission, District 2: Donna Bradbrook, Tina Certain, Charlie Jackson, and Bryan Williams
  • County Commission, District 4: Dewayne Baines and Ken Cornell
  • City Commission, District 2: Nathan Crabbe, Nelida Jean-Baptiste, and Wyatt Clark Zintiz
  • City Commission, District 3: Casey Willits and DeJeon Cain
  • Mayor: Evan Morgan Moon and Harvey Ward Jr.

The venue offers ADA-compliant parking, entrance, and elevator access. Attendees with accessibility needs can contact info@gainesvilleisforpeople.org.

  • “So the conservative who resists change is as valuable as the radical who proposes it—perhaps as much more valuable as roots are more vital than grafts. It is good that new ideas should be heard, for the sake of the few that can be used; but it is also good that new ideas should be compelled to go through the mill of objection, opposition, and contumely; this is the trial heat which innovations must survive before being allowed to enter the human race.”
    ― Will Durant, The Lessons of History

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  • If their endorsement hinges on the candidates supporting the continued purchase of hotels for homeless, free bus rides, and ignoring the panhandlers, my vote is to put them all on a bus and send them to San Francisco or Portland.
    The people there continue to vote for the same progressive policies that burden those cities and make them virtually unaffordable for anyone but the most affluent—let them pay for their own idiocy.

    On a side note—there should be an automatic disqualification for Certain racists seeking office. I guess we’ll see what type of character the voters in Gainesville really have.

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