Palm Coast Mayor Mike Norris has sued the City of Palm Coast over the allegedly illegal appointment of Councilman Charles Gambaro last year, court documents show. Norris is alleging the previous City Council ignored a requirement that they fill the vacant District 4 seat by special election per guidelines in the city charter.
The move is the latest in a growing rift between Norris and virtually all major figures both on the City Council and among city staff. Norris himself was just investigated for potential charter violations at Gambaro’s urging, and the Council censured him last month.
Councilman Gambaro was the one to bring the claims of misconduct against Norris, and has repeatedly advocated for asking Gov. Ron DeSantis to remove Norris from office. He made one motion to submit such a request, but the motion failed 4-1.
The language of Norris’ lawsuit seeks a series of remedies for the situation. Along with legal counsel Anthony Sabatini, Norris is seeking to have the District 4 Council seat vacated, a declaration that the City Council violated the city charter by appointing Gambaro, a court order for a special election to be held, and the ousting of Gambaro from office.
The city charter requires that the City Council hold a special election if a vacancy occurs with over two years remaining in a four-year term. This was the case when Cathy Heighter resigned last year, but the timing made the qualifying window for a special election on the November ballot just days long. The Council, at the advice of City Attorney Marcus Duffy, opted to leave the seat vacant until after the November elections and appoint an interim member for the following two years. This led to Gambaro’s selection from a field of eleven applicants.
“The City, however, chose to disregard the Charter, refuse to hold an election, and has unlawfully allowed Gambaro to falsely claim title to the Seat passed November 5, 2024, and continuously since,” the lawsuit states. Norris is the lone plaintiff in the suit, while the listed defendants are the City of Palm Coast, the Flagler Supervisor of Elections, and Charles Gambaro.
The City Council is slated to meet Tuesday morning, one day after Norris’ suit was filed with the Florida’s Seventh Judicial Circuit Court. There now exists an unprecedented war between two Council members: both are seeking the other’s removal from office by the state government as they serve together on the dais. Their colleagues, Vice Mayor Theresa Carli Pontieri and Councilmen Ty Miller and David Sullivan, are in a position unlike any a Council has faced in the city’s history.
