Unopposed Races Seal Seats for Craig Russell and Elizabeth Ingram, Canceling Winter Park’s March Vote
The Winter Park High School coach will get a second term and a political newcomer will join the commission in March
Dec. 8, 2025
By Beth Kassab
Two City Commissioners were elected without opposition on Monday after the qualifying period ended at noon with only one candidate filing for each of the two seats that would have appeared on Winter Park’s March ballot.
City Commissioner Craig Russell was re-elected to his first full term in Seat 2 after winning a tight race in 2024 to finish the term vacated by Sheila DeCiccio when she became mayor. First-time candidate Elizabeth Ingram was elected to fill Seat 1, which was an open seat after Commissioner Marty Sullivan chose not to run again.
Elizabeth Ingram. Above photo: Ingram talks with a supporter at a recent event. Photos courtesy of the Ingram campaign.
Ingram, 38, will become the youngest member of the five-person commission.
A trained opera singer, she serves on the Public Art Advisory Board and previously led the Dommerich Elementary PTA. She said she hopes to focus on protecting the character that sets Winter Park apart from other communities.
She has been campaigning since the summer and filed to run in July.
“I’m so, so thankful for all of the supporters who rallied around me from the beginning,” Ingram said Monday afternoon, shortly after learning she would be elected without an opponent. “The most important thing for me as a commissioner is just being there for the residents. Am I representing them as well and as accurately as I can? Because that’s truly what my job is about. I’m excited to be a new young voice for Winter Park, and I’m excited to represent everybody.”
She raised just under $13,000, according to the most recent campaign finance report.
Michael Carolan, chairman of the real estate department at Winderweedle, Haines, Ward & Woodman, told the Voice in September that he planned to run for Seat 1 with backing from the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce. But Carolan announced on Facebook last month that he had decided not to run.
Russell said Monday that he is thrilled to have the opportunity to serve another term.
The Winter Park High School teacher and coach made history nearly two years ago as the first Black candidate elected in the city in more than a century. At 45, he is the youngest current commissioner.
“I’m excited to continue the work that I started,” Russell said. “And I’m excited to hopefully gain the trust and respect of those who didn’t vote for me, because I work for and speak for all the residents.”
He listed engaging young people, improving infrastructure and transportation, and boosting community volunteerism and civic involvement as priorities. He helped spearhead the formation of a youth advisory council as well as an educational series on the safety of e-bikes and e-scooters for kids.
He has not yet filed a campaign finance report because he just filed his initial campaign documents last month.
Unopposed contests—particularly in local races—aren’t unusual and may even be increasing. According to data from BallotReady, 61% of city contests across the country were unopposed last year, compared to 44% in 2020.
Fewer candidates mean voters have fewer choices about who represents them at the level of government closest to home—the policymakers who decide police and fire budgets, set road and traffic priorities, and shape the community through decisions about development, parks and how much residents pay for electricity and clean water.
Because both Winter Park races drew only one candidate, the March city election is canceled, and Russell and Ingram will be sworn in that same month. Commissioner Warren Lindsey was also elected without opposition earlier this year to Seat 4, meaning three of the five members of the incoming commission did not face voters at the polls.
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