Appeals court involvement complicates outcome of vote
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CASMIRA HARRISON/Palatka Daily News Crescent City Commissioner Cynthia Burton, right, speaks to a resident Tuesday afternoon outside a polling location in the city.
A special election Tuesday in Crescent City ended with the majority of voters opting to recall a sitting city commissioner, according to the Putnam County supervisor of elections.
Of the 307 people who voted, 180 voted to recall Commissioner Cynthia Burton, Elections Supervisor Charles Overturf III said. There were 126 votes to keep Burton in her position, while one vote was in a provisional ballot.
“I think this is a first for Putnam County,” he said Tuesday night.
Only people registered to vote in Precinct 1, which is within the city limits of Crescent City, could vote in the election. There were 1,013 people who were eligible to vote, he said.
The results are unofficial and will be certified when the canvassing board meets Monday, he added.
Chris Coleman was the only person to qualify to replace Burton should she be removed from office, but he will not yet take her seat. The recall case has been moved to the 5th District Court of Appeal, where the case is awaiting a ruling..
Overturf said the court can still rule against the decision to have a recall election, which means the special election results would get thrown out and Burton would keep her seat.
The appeals court had not published its ruling as of Tuesday.
The efforts to recall Burton began after a meeting in 2021 – during the COVID-19 pandemic – that was available online and was open for public comment on YouTube, but the public was not allowed in the building. The group Recall Crescent City Florida filed a petition against Burton last year, alleging Burton committed malfeasance when she took part in the meeting “behind locked doors.”
The group had already tried – and failed – to recall Commissioner Judith West, who attended the 2021 meeting but did not seek re-election in 2022. A post on the group’s Facebook page claims efforts will be made to recall Mayor Michele Myers and Commissioner Harry Banks, who also attended that meeting in 2021.
The group has made no mention of trying to recall Crescent City Commissioner Lisa DeVitto, who also attended the 2021 meeting.