The Flagler Beach City Commission election was held on Tuesday, with Scott Spradley and RJ Santore winning three-year terms in office. They were up against each other and Rick Belhumeur on a ballot in which residents could choose up to two out of the three candidates. Belhumeur, an incumbent on his second stint in office, was voted out for the second time in his career.
Out of 4,647 registered voters in Flagler Beach, only 1,355 turned out for Tuesday’s election. The City Commission was the only race on the ballot, held each year in March to set three-year terms. Santore paced the field with 972 votes, followed by Spradley with 860 and Belhumeur with 492.
“It looks like a good turnout,” said eventual winner Scott Spradley on Election Day. “I know that the last couple weeks I’ve said on social media and also at City Commission meetings during commissioner comments that it’s important that everyone get out and vote. We don’t want to have a situation that we have a very low turnout and then unhappy people. I’d much rather have a high turnout which would then better ensure that whoever the winners are is consistent with what the community desires.”
Rick Belhumeur Goes, Scott Spradley Stays
Rick Belhumeur has served a total of three terms on the Flagler Beach City Commission. He was first elected in 2016, serving two terms before losing the 2022 election. He ran again in 2023, regaining his seat at the expense of then-incumbent Deborah Phillips. Now, in his first time on the ballot since winning his seat back, Belhumeur is ‘de-commissioned’ once again, as he humorously describes it.
“I never made any decision based on keeping my job as a commissioner,” Belhumeur said on Facebook after the results came in. “I followed my conscience and my duty to my constituents.”
Scott Spradley has now been elected to a second three-year term in office, having first been voted in on the 2023 ballot. He was the runaway favorite in that race, winning double the votes of all but one of his four opponents. This time he didn’t pace the field once again, but he did finish comfortably ahead of Belhumeur to retain his City Commission seat.
RJ Santore Joins the City Commission
The new face on the City Commission is RJ Santore, the VP of the Ralph Santore & Sons firework manufacturing business. According to one of Santore’s opponents, his bid for office was preceded by a steadily blossoming involvement in local affairs.
“I’ve had 74 town halls during my three-year term, and I noticed a couple years ago there was a young guy who sat in the back, didn’t say much, who came to most of the meetings,” recalls Scott Spradley. “After a while he started asking questions, and after a few more meetings he’d ask me questions after the town halls. Then later on he began coming to City Commission meetings and then expressing questions during public comment.”
On his campaign website, Santore listed responsible growth, infrastructure, and parking availability as three of his highest-priority issues. He also proposed the restoration of a referendum on all large annexations, giving city voters the ability to approve or reject proposals of large additions to the city’s area. That could’ve greatly changed the outcome of two large annexations for major housing developments that the Commission approved earlier this year.
“I’ve known Scott on a personal level through his Saturday morning Coffee with a Commissioner [town halls],” Santore said Tuesday afternoon. “I’ve known Rick mostly through the city meetings, but it’s been a good experience getting to talk to and know them.”
Election Results:
- Rick Belhumeur – 21.17% – 492
- RJ Santore – 41.82% – 972 ELECTED
- Scott Spradley – 37.01% – 860 ELECTED
