FORT WALTON BEACH — In a 5-1 vote Tuesday, John Mead was selected to fill the seat left vacant by the sudden resignation of Larry Patrick from the Fort Walton Beach City Council. The selection comes after almost two months of heated exchanges during council meetings at City Hall.
With the nomination, Mead will now serve on the council for the next 16 months until the next general election, where he can run for election.
Here’s what we know.
A controversial beginning
At the beginning of Tuesday’s council meeting, Councilman Travis Smith proposed that the nominee selected to fill the vacant seat be seated immediately instead of waiting for the next meeting.
Nominees John Mead, Jeff Pendleton and Sharon Trenary said that they would be comfortable starting immediately, while Debi Riley and Brandon Bishop said they would prefer to start at the next meeting so they could familiarize themselves with the issues being discussed, including the upcoming final public hearing on the city's budget.
According to Robert's Rules of Order, when there is a motion and a second, the issue is then open for public comment. No such discussion took place after Smith's motion.
Former council member Amy Jamieson told the Northwest Florida Daily News that, in her opinion, the council has already come to a decision on who would fill that vacant seat.
"The whole process in my opinion is wrong," said former councilman Mike Minnick at the beginning of the public comment section of the meeting. "You should have had public comments first."
The voting process
Each council member had the opportunity to vote for their first three picks for the nomination. A first-place vote received three points, a second-place vote received two points, and a third-place vote received one point.
After the first round of voting:
Mead, Riley and Hartman moved on to the second round of voting. Mead received five votes, while Riley received one. That singular vote was cast by Nic Allegretto, while each council member affiliated with the FWB Watch Group and Councilmember Bryce Jeter voted for Mead.
Public reaction
Before the meeting started at 4 p.m., a "Rally for Riley" hosted by the Okaloosa NAACP was held outside council chambers. About 15 people held signs supporting Riley's nomination.
The public comment section of the meeting came after the second round of voting, which showed Mead would receive the nomination. Supporters of Riley gave their final call to action to the current members to choose Riley for the vacant seat.
Almost all of the public comments in support of Riley echoed the same remarks that previous members of the public have made at the past two meetings.
One of the most impassioned speakers who took to the podium was former councilman Kirby Locklear. Noting that his words would fall on deaf ears if spoken to the council members, he turned around and spoke to residents who were in attendance.
His words to the public were akin to a call to action to remember the injustice some community members feel when they see the lack of representation on the council when the next election cycle returns in 2025.
While Locklear spoke, some council members could be seen smirking while his back was turned to the board.
Mead's reaction
During final thoughts from the council members, new Councilman Mead spoke.
"I'm humbled and very appreciative for the vote of confidence to be up here with everyone," said Mead. "I hope to work with staff as we have done in the past and I hope to be of the best service as I can for the short time I am up here."
Riley's reaction
Before getting to Riley's thoughts, Mayor Dick Rynearson shared his thoughts on the nomination process. He noted that he appreciated Riley's dedication and tenacity throughout the process and said that he believes that he will eventually see Riley as a council member at some point in the future.
For Riley, it seemed that, in her opinion, getting the nomination was an uphill battle from the beginning, even though she has had overwhelming vocal support in the chamber for three consecutive council meetings. Riley's name will be seen in the future, as supporters expect her to run for a council position in the next general election.