Ballots are already printed with mail-in voting beginning in a week, but votes cast in one Islamorada Village Council race won’t be counted, due to a candidate’s recent death, according to the elections supervisor.
The vice mayor of Islamorada, Ken Davis, passed away on Sept. 12 after collapsing and being placed in an induced coma. Serving on the dais following a 2018 victory, Davis announced his run for reelection for another two years (read more about his lasting impact on page 12). Davis qualified for the election before the Aug. 11 deadline, as did resident Henry Rosenthal, for seat 4.
“Ken was qualified, he met the qualifying for the village and was on the ballot. As far as how ballots cast for Ken Davis will be handled, that’s a question for the elections office,” said Roget Bryan, village attorney.
Monroe County Supervisor of Elections Joyce Griffin told Keys Weekly that the ballots are already printed, and that the office will not be counting the race. Griffin said Rosenthal has won the race because “no one else is qualified.”
“If there’s only two people in a race, and one of them drops out, then the other person gets it,” Griffin said.
In an ad in today’s Keys Weekly, Rosenthal said he’s deeply saddened to hear the passing of Ken Davis.
“My heartfelt condolences to his family at this difficult time,” the ad states.
As for the current vacancy on council, there are no plans at this time to fill it, with three regular meetings left before a new council convenes following the November election.
