Santa Rosa County District 5 Commissioner Colten Wright, during this afternoon’s “Pensacola Right Now” show on Cat Country 98.7’s sister station News Radio 92.3, told host Joe Ford he will not support a non-binding referendum on the proposed incorporation of Navarre on the Nov. 5 General Election ballot.
Wright said Florida House District 3. Rep. Joel Rudman was “fully unprofessional” with “non-productive comments” during the July 8 Santa Rosa County Commission meeting, stating that was “not the right place to bring that forward.”
“Based on that, I will certainly not be supporting any effort by the county to have anything to do with a straw poll,” Wright said, pointing out that Rudman had committed to commissioners and county staff that he “wasn’t going to lay that our feet like he did.”
Wright said Rudman had pulled a “political stunt” to apply pressure to the Board of County Commissioners, having both sides come out and argue during Monday’s meeting.
“If he feels strongly about it, I think he has the ability to put his big boy pants on and handle his business,” Wright said, noting that a straw poll isn’t required for Rudman to sponsor incorporation legislation.
Back in May, Wright told the pro-incorporation group Preserve Navarre that he would not support putting the measure on the ballot because their in-house feasibility study contained false and inaccurate information.
Santa Rosa County Commission Vice Chairman James Calkins also opposes putting a straw poll on the ballout. “I don’t want to put a burden on the citizens of Navarre,” Calkins said. “I’ve opposed incorporation since 2013. This is all a part of a local liberal agenda.”
Former Florida Senate President Don Gaetz, who is running for the District 1 Senate seat now held by outgoing Sen. Doug Broxson, during a political forum on Monday told South Santa Rosa News he will not approve any incorporation effort which does not have majority support through an official non-binding referendum via the Supervisor of Elections Office.
According to the SOE, the county commission is the only authority which can place non-binding referendums on Santa Rosa County ballots.
LISTEN TO WRIGHT’S INTERVIEW – discussion takes place around the 30-minute mark: https://www.newsradio923.com/prn/episode/279a8fbf/pensacola-right-now-71124-hour-1
