Gainesville City Commission elections are over. Susan Bottcher won the District 3 seat, and Todd Chase beat out incumbant Lauren Poe for the District 2 seat.
So, what happens next?
Bottcher, like the current Commissioners, is a democrat. She has promised to be a full-time commissioner and attend every neighborhood association meeting to make sure she is in touch with the voters.
During my conversations with Bottcher, it’s hard to tell how she’ll vote. She’s good at crafting her responses in such a way that makes both sides like her, but we’ll see soon enough how those words translate into actions. She said she stands by the current Commission, so perhaps she’ll vote similarly.
Chase, a republican, is expected to bring a new outlook to the officially non-partisan Commission.
From what I’ve seen of Chase, he’ll look after the interests of local businesses, which may mean fighting against measures like the already-established fire assessment fee.
We still have about a month left until the new Commissioners are sworn in. Until then, the Commission still has work to do.
