Two candidates have filed for the Lynn Haven Mayoral race

Published: Feb. 5, 2023 at 10:20 PM CST

PANAMA CITY, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) - So far two candidates have submitted their paperwork to the Bay County Supervisor of Elections for the mayoral race in Lynn Haven.

One candidate is Judy Tinder. Tinder was a Lynn Haven commissioner, but she recently decided to resign from seat four to put her name in the hat for the mayoral race.

NewsChannel 7 spoke to her earlier this week about that decision and what she is hoping to do if elected. To read that article click here.

The second candidate that has filed is the current Mayor Jesse Nelson. Nelson was elected for the position just two years ago in a special election. He tells NewsChannel 7, one thing he isn’t changing this time around is his campaign message.

“The campaign slogan that I ran on before, that I am going to run on again is that we are greater together,” Nelson said. “I hope that my tenure as mayor has proven that. I have tried to bring togetherness and unity in our community, unity among our commission so that we can move forward from the things in the past and move forward to the bright future that is ahead of us.”

Nelson said that if re-elected he would like to keep working on several projects that he already started. This includes the improvement of the city’s stormwater system.

“We have spent millions of dollars in improving the stormwater infrastructure and we have new plans underway. I am very proud of the innovation that we made with stormwater to help alleviate the flooding in our community. We have a long way to go with our stormwater, but we have a long way to go,” Nelson said.

Overall, Nelson said he is grateful for the opportunity to be considered for the position once again.

“I hope the citizens put their confidence in me to continue to lead our city at the greatness in which we can become,” Nelson said.

Lynn Haven residents will have the final say when it comes to who will be the next mayor of the city. Election Day is set for April 18.

The last day candidates can file to run for the mayor position is on February 10 at 12 p.m.