Bradenton Voters May Decide on Term Limits, Mayoral Voting Power in November
By Lisa Neff
Bradenton voters could decide this fall two fundamental questions about how their city is governed: whether to establish term limits for elected officials and whether to remove the mayor’s ability to cast a tie-breaking vote.
The Bradenton City Council gave first readings May 27 to two ordinances that, if adopted, would place charter amendments before voters on the Nov. 3 general election ballot. Final readings and public hearings are scheduled for June 10.
The proposals stem from a May 6 workshop at which Mayor Gene Brown described both ideas as long-overdue questions that deserve a public verdict.
Term limits: three consecutive terms, starting in 2028
If voters approve a term limit amendment, the city charter would be changed to cap the mayor and city council members at three full, consecutive four-year terms in the same office — a maximum of 12 years.
The limit would take effect beginning with the January 2028 term.
Under the proposed language, an official who serves three consecutive terms would have to sit out two years before seeking the same office again.
During the May workshop, council members debated the merits and risks of various term lengths. Brown said eight years was too short and 16 or 20 years too long, but 12 seemed just right.
Council Member Lisa Gonzalez Moore raised concerns about whether term limits might make it harder to recruit qualified candidates, particularly those who balance demanding professional or financial obligations alongside public service. “My only concern is attracting candidates — are we limiting ourselves?” she said.
Council Member Marianne Barnebey drew on Tallahassee as a cautionary example, noting that Florida’s state term limits produced a cycle where unelected staff accumulated institutional knowledge and influence while newly elected officials were constantly relearning the ropes.
“About the time they figured out where the correct bathroom is, they’re out,” she said.
Barnebey said term limits exist now: “They’re called elections.”
Council Member Pam Coachman countered that long-tenured council members standing for geographic wards can build a kind of unchecked hold on their districts over time. “Complacency, and also maybe even a somewhat unwritten power, comes with it,” she said.
The council broadly concluded that the question belongs to voters.
Mayor’s voting power: removing the tie-breaker
The second ballot measure would make a more structural change to the city charter. Under current rules, the mayor serves as “ex officio president of the Council” and may cast a vote in the event of a tie.
The proposed amendment would remove that designation and the tie-breaking vote and add language explicitly stating that the mayor is not a member of the city council.
If the ordinance passes and the measure goes to voters, the ballot question will ask: “Shall the Bradenton City Charter be amended to remove the Mayor’s right to cast a vote in the event of a tie; and, to remove the designation of Mayor as ‘ex officio president of the Council’ and add language to provide that the Mayor is not a member of the City Council.”
Brown said during the May 6 workshop that removing the mayor’s voting authority was, in part, about freeing him to communicate more openly with council members on matters that might come to a vote — something Florida’s Sunshine Law currently constrains.
Vice Mayor Jayne Kocher said the change could have an upside for civic deliberation. If a 2-2 deadlock can no longer be broken by the mayor, the council would be forced to build broader consensus — or let a measure fail. “I think it’ll put more importance on building consensus that way,” she said. “If you can’t build any consensus, then maybe we need to not have it pass and figure out a way to build consensus.”
City attorney Scott E. Rudacille noted during the workshop that the council would have the option to kill either ordinance at the June 10 final reading if members change their minds.