The Naples Press held a forum for the community on Tuesday, February 27, 2024. One large concern in the race is misleading political messaging.

For the first time in the city of Naples’ mayoral race, Political Action Committees have inserted themselves into the forefront of this non-partisan competition.

Concerns over hostile and misleading messages and negative campaigning should be a part of Tuesday night’s discussion.

In the March 19 General Election, voters will choose between three candidates: incumbent Mayor Teresa Heitmann, City Councilman Ted Blankenship and former Councilman Gary Price.

All three candidates faced multiple moderators and answered questions about city issues during the forum.

Candidates got two minutes each for opening and closing statements, as well as 90 seconds per question.

Last week, WINK News reporter Emma Heaton asked each candidate what they would bring to the table:

• Gary Price: “We have to value property rights. We have to improve public safety. I’ve spent 20 years serving the city, and clearly, we have to go in a different direction. We’ve lost a lot of employees, the culture is down, and we want to rebuild that.”
• Mayor Teresa Heitmann: “I believe that I am fair, and I believe that I’m not anti-growth. I’m just making sure that we do it with slowly, no density, and we don’t change the heights and change the character of our community.”
• Ted Blankenship: “People are really concerned about the possibility of Naples changing dramatically from redevelopment, and the second big reason is, it’s just taking too long to get things done in Naples … I believe there are much better ways the city can operate to get things done faster.”

Candidates urge Naples voters to stay informed and avoid misleading messaging.

Tuesday night’s forum moderators are The Naples Press columnist Tim Aten, WINK News anchor Chirs Cifatte and Trey Radel from radio station 92.5 FOX. The forum ended at 7:30 p.m.

(Article originally published by WINK News. See the full WINK News report.)