New candidate enters mayoral contest as qualifying deadline nears
First-time candidate Michael Cameron Sidawi opened a campaign account to run against Vice Mayor Sheila DeCiccio
Dec. 8, 2023
By Beth Kassab
Vice Mayor Sheila DeCiccio drew an opponent in her bid for mayor with real estate school owner Michael Cameron Sidawi filing to run against her.
Reached by phone on Friday, Sidawi told the Voice he wasn’t yet ready to discuss his campaign and declined to answer questions.
He has until Monday at noon to turn in the required petitions to secure a spot on the March 19 ballot.
DeCiccio turned her petitions in earlier in the week and said she is focused on getting her message about maintaining Winter Park’s charm and fixing infrastructure needs in front of voters.
“I am looking forward to running a positive campaign and highlighting the accomplishments of Mayor [Phil] Anderson and the commission, discussing the issues, answering questions and, most importantly, listening to the residents and giving them a voice at City Hall,” DeCiccio said.
She announced her campaign in October and resigned from Commission Seat 2 effective after the election in order to run. That triggered an election for Seat 2, which has drawn three candidates so far.
Jason Johnson, an attorney, and Craig Russell, a teacher and coach at Winter Park High School both submitted their qualifying petitions to run for the seat.
Stockton Reeves, director of the Center for Public Safety, is also running for Seat 2, but has not yet submitted his petitions.
WinterParkVoiceEditor@gmail.com
Curious, could the Voice list the specific City of Winter Park Boards the new candidates have served on, along with their years of service?
Also, could the Voice specifically list, what City of Winter Park initiatives the candidates Michael Sidawi and Craig Russell have been involved with?
Curious how someone wants to be the Mayor of Winter Park in only three months, but they aren’t prepared to talk about their campaign or answer any questions.
“ Sidawi told the Voice he wasn’t yet ready to discuss his campaign and declined to answer questions.”
What????
Hi, yes, we will be writing a lot more about the candidates and the issues heading into the election, including the questions you asked about service etc. Some candidates have already detailed their backgrounds and some of that information is included in the links to previous stories you will see in this story. My goal ahead of the election is to help voters understand the differences between the candidates and give them enough information to make an informed decision. Anyone with specific questions is welcome to send them to me here, on facebook or via email and I will include in our candidate interviews. Thank you!
Thinking this candidacy is a mirage. Seems likely we will have no challenger to DeCiccio in the mayoral race. Treasurer change and bank change on date of filing shows lack of forethought. And finding more than a couple dozen voters to sign petitions by Monday (tomorrow) noon is harder than naming a treasurer.
I hope that the candidates are asked how they see AI impacting our city and benefits and risks we face. This goes along with the smart city plan but I would like to see specific information with descriptive examples. Thank you Beth.