ORLANDO, Fla. – 2023 is an off-year for politics usually, but in Orlando, residents will go to the polls for a big and consequential race in the next few weeks.
Orlando’s mayor is one of the most powerful people in Central Florida. Not only does he govern the largest city in the area (between 2003 and 2022, Orlando’s population grew from 204,750 people to 316,081, according to the U.S. Census), but he also serves on numerous governing boards, including the Central Florida Commuter Rail Commissioner, the Central Florida Expressway Authority and Visit Orlando, to name a few, which means he works with other mayors on regional projects that affect Central Florida as a whole.
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There are four candidates running to be mayor of Orlando, including incumbent Buddy Dyer.
The deadline to request a vote-by-mail ballot for this election is Oct. 26.
Early voting runs Oct. 28 through Nov. 5.
To find out if you are eligible to vote in the Orlando elections, and where you vote, head to the Orange County Supervisor of Elections website.
You can check your registration information, request a vote-by-mail ballot or find your polling place there.
Here is what you need to know about the candidates.
[COMMENT BELOW: What questions would you ask the mayoral candidates if you could?]
STEVE DIXON — Website | Facebook
Steve Dixon is a Marine veteran who also works in the defense industry. In 2022, he challenged State Sen. Linda Stewart as a Republican and lost.
Dixon says he is running to lower the cost of living in the city and jumpstart new business growth. He wants to do this by changing zoning laws and fast-tracking approvals for affordable housing projects, and creating tax relief programs for low-income families and seniors.
Dixon also wants to cut regulation for small business owners and provide grants, while also creating tax incentives for bigger companies, and he says he wants to focus on community policing and strengthening training and resources for law enforcement.
BUDDY DYER — Website | Facebook
There are people who have lived their whole lives in Orlando and only known one mayor.
Buddy Dyer was elected in a special election in 2003 after Mayor Glenda Hood left to become Florida’s secretary of state.
He was elected to a full term in 2004 and has been reelected ever since. Dyer is the city’s longest-running mayor in history.
Before Dyer was mayor, he served in the Florida Senate, and he was an engineer.
Dyer has presided over unprecedented growth in the city. He’s presided over the creation of Medical City at Lake Nona, the construction of the Dr. Phillips Performing Arts Center and the Amway Center, and helped bring Orlando City Soccer to the area. SunRail, the Creative Village cluster with the downtown UCF campus are also some of the milestones under his tenure.
But all that growth comes with problems. Orlando has an affordable housing crisis. The city has also been grappling with increased crime, particularly in the downtown area. A survey earlier this year showed a majority of people did not feel safe in downtown Orlando at night.
Homelessness is also a concern, as it’s on the rise throughout the metro area. Earlier this year the city approved a three-year plan to try and reduce homelessness.
The city also instituted changes to downtown venues at night to increase safety, added more police officers to the area, and made other changes to things like parking lots. But those policies do have their critics, especially from bars and nightclubs, who feel they are being squeezed.
Dyer also unveiled a new initiative in September aimed at revitalizing the downtown area.
Dyer’s sixth campaign for mayor will be his last, he said earlier this year.
The retired Orlando police captain and former city commissioner is once again running to unseat Dyer as mayor. Ings is a native of the city, and his father was OPD’s first Black detective.
Ings says if elected mayor, he would add more neighborhood police substations throughout the city, increase pedestrian safety with more traffic signals, enforce speed zones and drivers yielding to pedestrians, create workforce housing for firefighters, police officers, teachers and other workers, partner with developers to build more affordable housing, and increase transparency and accountability in city contracts.
TONY VARGAS — Website | Facebook
Tony Vargas is a fitness trainer and small business owner, and he says that experience running a business in Orlando gives him an understanding of the city’s challenges.
Vargas says he wants to focus on crime and public safety by boosting law enforcement and putting an end to homeless camps while finding solutions to aid the homeless. He wants to use the University of Central Florida as the center of a new revitalization effort downtown, support small businesses, and enhance in equipment, training and infrastructure for first responders.
We want to hear from you: What are your questions for Orlando’s mayoral candidates?
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