Shari Sebastiao seeks a Milton City Council seat this November, saying her past experience and continued involvement make her the better candidate.

With U.S. Rep. Jimmy Patronis taking 71 percent of the vote districtwide in the Aug. 18 Florida primary, the first-term congressman from Panama City will face off against Democratic challenger Gay Valimont in the November general election

Santa Rosa County Commissioner Kerry Smith says that while he removed signs critical of him, he argued the signs were unmarked and sat on public land after a resident reported him to the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office for theft.

Congressman Jimmy Patronis made his first appearance before a local board of county commissioners on Aug. 11, providing a legislative update to Santa Rosa County officials and announcing the opening of a new district office in the area.

A Leon County judge this week determined the summary of a property tax cut ballot measure passed by the Legislature is filled with political rhetoric and is misleading.

U.S. Rep. Jimmy Patronis says the job is more fun than he expected.

Fifteen months into a congressional career that began with an April 2025 special election, the Panama City native has a theory about why Washington has been friendlier to him than advertised: Half of Congress already loves his district.

“You’ve got all these members of Congress from Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas. They all vacation in Northwest Florida,” Patronis said. “We’re their closest beaches. For me, being a product of the hospitality industry, I love to entertain.”

Whether that’s enough for voters is the question on Aug. 18. Patronis, 54, faces former Army Green Beret John Frankman and Navy veteran Doug Chico in the Republican primary. Waiting in November is Democrat Gay Valimont, who lost to Patronis by 9 percentage points in the April 2025 special election but carried Escambia County.

Patronis has endorsements from President Donald Trump for the second straight election cycle. On July 6, Patronis also secured endorsements from all four sheriffs in the district.

The sheriffs of every county in Florida’s 1st Congressional District have endorsed U.S. Rep. Jimmy Patronis for reelection, according to a news release from the Patronis campaign released July 6.

With the stroke of a pen, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed about $2.2 million in local projects championed by State Rep. Nathan Boyles, R-Baker, for Okaloosa and Santa Rosa counties, including equipment for three North Okaloosa fire departments and a footbridge that would have closed a gap on the Florida National Scenic Trail.

With the June 12 deadline passed, the list of candidates running for office in Santa Rosa County during the August primary has been set.

For the first time in nearly two years, Matt Gaetz is once again a public official after being nominated to serve on the Triumph Gulf Coast Board of Directors, beginning July 1.