Ray Stevens is going to try again after coming back from the edge.
After winning the District 3 seat runoff with 58 percent of the vote (and advancing past the primary by two votes), the former Palm Coast City Council member will run in the 2026 election to retake the seat he vacated when he became seriously ill just weeks into his term.
In late February, while in critical condition in the hospital, Stevens resigned. He said today, “I didn’t think I was getting out.” After placing me in the intensive care unit, they advised my wife and I to organize our affairs and decide whether or not to sign a DNR. (A do-not-resuscitate order is abbreviated as DRN.)
In order to finish Stevens’ nearly two-year tenure before the next general election, the council chose Dave Sullivan, who had recently served eight years on the County Commission. The 83-year-old Sullivan declared early on that he will not seek the seat in 2026. Stevens, 76, believes he still has work to do.
After spending two weeks in a wheelchair and two months in the hospital, I’m doing a whole lot better. I’ve nearly returned to my previous self. But much, much better.
“I’ve been asked to run again,” he added. I’ve got work to do. I want to keep the vows I made. I’m not pleased with the essentially unplanned and/or badly managed growth that is taking on here in Palm Coast. As I have stated, you must come off the bench and play if you’re unhappy with the way things are going.
With the same campaign signs (now belonging to his former challenger, Mark Stancel, who lost the primary by only two votes and became friends with Stevens during the recount), cards, and message, Stevens uses his success from last November as motivation to try again. However, this campaign would be his final one.
He declared, “I’m going to run to finish my term.” Since the election is for the end of that term, the term would be two years rather than four. He has no intention of running for office in 2028 if he wins. It would merely be to complete my term because I have other hobbies, family, and other things besides the municipal council. I believe it is my responsibility to at least try to keep my word. I have a task to do, like I mentioned.
Taking a step back from the controversies surrounding Mayor Mike Norris, he spoke about the council after his departure, calling it unhelpful on both sides. The mayor was acting in his own best interests. Stevens stated, “I don’t really have any personal feelings about it,” alluding to Norris’ unsuccessful lawsuit against the city to remove Charles Gambaro from the council. Since I like them all, I’ll just finish it there. However, as I mentioned before, the entire situation is counterproductive; they aren’t accomplishing anything and are constantly arguing. I’m not sure why, but I want to rejoin the council and perhaps provide some stability to the operation.
Stevens accepted that the council had passed a rate increase for utilities and that they would have to find a way to pay for it, but he emphasized that he had warned the council that the hike would be met with resistance prior to his resignation. He believed that too much progress had been made too quickly.
When Norris requested a legal opinion over Gambaro’s appointment last December, Stevens had warned against going far. However, he thought the judge’s conclusion was unclear, particularly since it went beyond declaring Norris to have no standing, which Stevens finds deceptive. He stated that any registered voter should have standing if they feel disenfranchised, and Norris is a voter.
Nevertheless, he continued, “I like Charlie and I have nothing against him.” It was already agreed upon to bring it up. To push the envelope, we’ll deal with the matter if someone decided to file a lawsuit. As it happened, the mayor was the one who wanted to file the lawsuit. I had not anticipated that.
Stevens also allowed Norris to get away with asking the city’s top two employees to resign at a private meeting with the mayor. Following the event, the council demanded an independent investigation, which concluded that Norris had broken the charter and obstructed administrative authority. Criticizing the investigation as hogwash, Stevens disagrees.
He claimed that it was nothing more than a series of unsworn assertions and innuendos (the statements have since been sworn). Did it suggest that the mayor lacks interpersonal skills? Indeed. You don’t want to discuss some of these stuff with staff, like nail polish and the like. However, he claimed that there would have needed to be a quid pro quo in order for the meeting with the chief of staff and the acting city manager to be unethical. Stevens stated, “I don’t know at this point what that way would have been, but it might have been handled better.” I’ve been out of the loop, as I mentioned, but I’m beginning to read the situation and am regaining my ability to make decisions.
Thus, he is returning. After a year and a half, what has changed? I’m the same person.
Stevens is the third applicant to submit a bid for a seat on the city council. Jeani Whitemoon Duarte and Tony Amaral Jr. have submitted their applications to compete for Theresa Pontieri’s seat in District 2. Pontieri stated that she is staying involved in local politics, although she has not indicated if this would entail rerunning for the position. She might be considering running for the position of County Commission. In that election, Charles Gambaro declared his intention to run for Congress, so securing the District 4 seat. There may be three council seats up for grabs in the 2026 elections.
