Voters in 12 Palm Beach County cities, towns and villages headed to the polls on Tuesday to vote in new council members and mayors, including cities like Boynton Beach, Riviera Beach and Royal Palm Beach.
Boynton Beach, the third largest city in Palm Beach County, has a new mayor: Rebecca Shelton.
"Together, we are going to build a stronger, more vibrant community," Shelton said in a statement. "The real work starts now, and I can’t wait to serve you."
Shelton won by a landslide, nabbing more than 50% of the vote against three other candidates. The previous mayor, Ty Penserga, was term-limited after three years.
Meanwhile, Thomas Turkin defeated Dom Vargas to grab the city's District 3 seat.
Over in the Village of Royal Palm Beach, voters elected Jeff Hmara as their new mayor — he is set to win nearly 60% of the vote. The vote follows the untimely passing of longtime public leader Fred Pinto last year.
During a watch party, Hmara said he was confident going into the race. "I know the relationships we've built here in Royal Palm Beach," he said. "I can feel it at the polls today."
READ MORE: Palm Beach County Administrator Verdenia Baker to retire
The city of Riviera Beach decided on two races. In a close race, Bruce Guyton defeated incumbent Tradrick McCoy in District 1.
And in another tight race incumbent Shirley Lanier won her third term in District 3.
The results come at the end of a controversial election cycle in the city, when five candidates were disqualified from running for council seats and the mayor's office after using debit cards to pay their election filing fees, which violated the city's rules.
Riviera Beach is also accepting mayoral applications from residents until April 4, 2025. The city council plans to select the new mayor in mid-April. The appointed mayor will serve a two-year term instead of the usual three-year term.
The council will appoint a new mayor after this election, but voters won’t elect a new one until the 2027 city general election.
Jupiter’s mayor Jim Kuretski was reelected, nabbing nearly 60 percent of the vote, defeating council member Cameron May.
The vote count for all races can be seen on the Supervisor of Elections website.
