Pennington, Pontieri Advance to General in Flagler County Commission Races

The Republican primary elections for two Flagler County Commission seats were decided Tuesday. Incumbent Commissioner Leann Pennington and current Palm Coast Vice Mayor Theresa Pontieri will each appear on the general election ballot in November. “It’s a sigh of relief, honestly I cried out of joy because it was such a tight race,” Pontieri said. “This means a lot to me. It felt good after doing so much work, after investing so much into the race. Greg Feldman should be very proud of the race he ran.” For the third straight Flagler County election cycle, no candidates filed to run for the County Commission as Democrats. Given the county’s strong red leaning, the Republican primary is often effectively the general election for county seats. Leann Pennington defeated fellow Republican candidates Anna Jones and Drew Moss. She will appear on the November ballot next to a blank write-in line. This is due to the filing of Denise Calderwood as a write-in candidate. Without Calderwood’s entry each candidate would’ve been Republican, allowing voters of all party affiliations to vote in the primary. Instead it was closed off to Republican voters only. Theresa Pontieri defeated just one Republican opponent in the District 2 primary: retired law enforcement officer Greg Feldman. She’ll go on to face Independent candidate Raymond Royer in the November general election. Pontieri chose to run for County Commission instead of seeking a second four-year term on the Palm Coast City Council. Pennington’s second term is all but won, barring a historic upset campaign from multiple-time candidate Calderwood. She was first elected in 2022, defeating incumbent Joe Mullins in the Republican primary representing District 4. “I want to congratulate the winner of tonight’s primary and thank every Flagler County voter who participated,” Anna Jones said in a statement. “To the hundreds of neighbors who signed petitions, volunteered, shared their concerns, and supported this grassroots campaign — thank you from the bottom of my heart. Your voices made it clear that residents want accountability, fiscal responsibility, smarter growth, and a government that puts people first. Although the results did not go our way, the issues that brought us together remain. I will continue to advocate for Flagler County’s future, and I encourage everyone to stay engaged.  We have much more work to do. It has been an honor to run this race with you. We want to keep Flagler Beautiful — and that work continues.” Board of County Commissioners, District 2 (Republican Primary): Greg Feldman – 47.91% – 7,666 Theresa Pontieri: 52.09% – 8,336 – ADVANCES TO GENERAL Board of County Commissioners, District 4 (Republican Primary): Anna Jones – 20.77% – 3,242 Drew Moss – 24.65% – 3,847 Leann Pennington – 54.58% – 8,520 – ADVANCES TO GENERAL