By Reggie Connell, Managing Editor
Apopka turned the page again Tuesday night, delivering a result that felt less like an election and more like a mandate.
Apopka City Commissioner Nick Nesta defeated Orange County Commissioner Christine Moore in Tuesday’s mayoral runoff. According to unofficial results from the Orange County Supervisor of Elections, Nesta received 4,934 votes (61.94%), while Moore received 3,032 votes (38.06%). It was the highest number of votes ever received by an Apopka mayoral candidate.
Voter turnout reached approximately 7,966 ballots cast, which is 20.29% of registered voters in Apopka. That figure nearly matches the 8,118 voters who participated in the March general election.
A total of 2,011 voters cast ballots on Election Day, while 2,377 ballots were submitted by mail, and 3,583 votes were cast during early voting. Party turnout was evenly split at the top, with 3,197 Democrats, 3,108 Republicans, 1,493 voters with no party affiliation, and 168 voters from other parties.
Nesta’s victory follows a strong performance in the March general election, where he finished first in a three-way race with 3,365 votes (41.6%), ahead of Moore and incumbent Mayor Bryan Nelson. Nelson, who received 2,147 votes (26.55%) in the general election, failed to advance to the runoff—marking a rare outcome in Apopka politics, where incumbents have historically performed well. Moore advanced to the runoff with 2,576 votes (31.8%), setting up a two-candidate race that concluded Tuesday.
Nesta, 36, will become the 29th mayor of Apopka (according to Wikipedia) after his swearing-in ceremony on April 28, ushering in a new administration and commission. Newly elected commissioners Yesenia Baron and Sam Ruth will join Nadia Anderson and recently re-elected Diane Velazquez to form the newest edition of the Apopka City Commission.
Their first meeting as a commission will be on Wednesday, May 6, at 1:30 pm in the Council Chambers at City Hall.
This is a breaking news story that will be updated in future editions of The Apopka Voice.
