In this liberal-leaning district, the incumbent worries more about the challenge by a fellow Republican than about the Democrat.
By Noah Bookstein
Original Air Date: May 15, 2026
Host: District 2 covers all of the City of Sarasota, and it is the most Democrat-leaning of the five Sarasota County Commission districts. In 2022, Mark Smith, a Republican, edged out a Democratic contender by around 300 votes. Now, Smith is the incumbent, and he is facing a Republican challenger in the August 18 primaries. Smith sat down with WSLR News to talk about his first term and why he should get a second.
NB: Mark Smith says he is not a career politician.
Mark Smith. | Photo: Werner
MS: I’m an architect ready for office and not a politician. I look at this as public service.
NB: The Siesta Key architect narrowly won a first term on the Sarasota County Commission in 2022 defeating Democrat Fredd Atkins, a former mayor deeply rooted in the Newtown community, by just 373 votes in a majority Democrat district, where Smith was projected to lose by over 10%.
MS: My only chance, I felt, was that if I could convince leadership of the neighborhoods that a Republican architect on Siesta Key gave a poop about the neighborhoods, then I had a shot. My wife, Esther, and I have been going to the Coalition City Neighborhood Association meeting meetings for the last four years, and any neighborhood that invites us will go. Quite honestly, I thought that was, I thought that was the job—to show up—but I was told, “We’ve never seen a county commissioner at these neighborhood meetings.”
NB: Now running for re-election, Smith faces challenges from both sides. On the Democratic side, he’s not losing sleep.
MS: Well, the gentleman—he filed to run against me three weeks after I was sworn in. It was January of 23. I tell folks, “That’s before I even had a chance to screw up.” I mean, come on. I don’t believe it’ll qualify.
NB: His more serious challenge comes from within his own party, Republican primary challenger Kristina Sargent, an attorney and veteran.
Smith, speaking at a recent event by SURE, a social justice coalition of local churches. | Photos: Ramon Lopez
MS: When you’re looking for people to run for office, I think it’s important that they’ve been here a while. I said I grew up here and had my own business here since 1994. But I will say I have ticked off some developers that I know have given heavily to her campaign.
NB: When it comes to the hard votes, and there have been many, Smith has a personal standard.
MS: It’s never hard to make the right decision. It can be lonely at times, but in fact, I was on a number of one four votes when I first got on with the board, to the point I thought, if I run for election, my motto is going to be “I’m the one.” I’ve told folks I can’t help if the other four are wrong. As long as my wife still loves me, I’m good.
NB: Smith does have some regrets, including the county’s 2024 funding cut for the 211 suicide hotline.
MS: I’d say probably the toughest one was for 211—the suicide line—because it was a politically bogus decision, and I really caught some hell with my daughters on that one. That one I regret.
NB: When Smith took his seat on the commission, he quickly discovered the issues were larger and older than he expected.
MS: I feel like a guy that bought a used car and just found out they didn’t ever change the oil. There’s a lot of maintenance to catch up.
NB: Part of that inheritance was a development pipeline he couldn’t reverse—projects approved by previous commissions that are legally entitled to be built regardless of who sits on the board today. Smith says he’s not against development, but he makes a distinction.
MS: I’m not anti-development, but there’s a right and wrong way to do it. You need infrastructure, both roads and water. Seems pretty basic, but maybe not.
NB: Developers are no longer required by the state to make investments in infrastructure to support their projects. Smith says he voted against developments he felt cut too many corners and didn’t include affordable housing, but his record isn’t without contradiction. He voted yes on the rezoning of the Sarasota Square Mall property for hundreds of market rate apartments with no affordable housing. He says his hands were tied.
MS: Although I did talk to the developers—”Why can’t we get some affordable housing here?”—the problem is our county attorney has told us that we can’t force it. You have to make the developer whole, and I’m not quite sure what that means.
NB: The county’s current affordable housing plan includes inheriting property when someone with no family dies, or appropriating funds when federal disaster money flows in after a hurricane.
MS: An affordable housing plan can’t be waiting for someone to die with no family or a hurricane to kill us. I mean, that’s not a plan.
NB: Smith is candid about how the county’s fund for affordable housing has been chronically underfunded. The state’s Live Local Act is supposedly designed to help, but Smith isn’t a fan.
MS: It sets the AMI too high. 40% has to be 120% of the average mean income. Well, if people are having a hard time at, say, 100% of the average mean income, 120% isn’t affordable. Not to the folks that work for a living. It’s going to get to the point where we go to a restaurant and have to bus our own tables.
NB: He’s also critical of how the state has structured the law to benefit developers over residents.
MS: Preemptions are to, quite frankly, lower development costs because when you get rid of having to go before the planning commission and you forego having to have neighborhood workshops and you forego having to go before the county commission and have a public hearing, you’ve saved the developer money. We have plenty of commercial land that needs to be developed—could be redeveloped for affordable housing—that has infrastructure. It’s on existing roads. It has water and sewer there as opposed to going out east and doing it in a pasture where there’s no infrastructure. To me, it makes more sense this way.
NB: If he wins a second term, workforce housing will be a top priority.
MS: If I can crack that nut, I’d be a happy camper.
NB: Beyond housing, Smith’s vision for Sarasota is rooted in resilience and sustainability.
MS: If we can keep preserving more land so we have—we protect our open space. We have sensible, sustainable communities. Why not work with nature and not fight it?
NB: Smith says conserved open space would help reduce flooding and provide safe animal crossings. Smith is clear-eyed about the timeline but hopeful about the county government’s progress.
MS: I used to say that the government works at a glacial pace, but nowadays glaciers are kicking our ass. Just get out and vote. Voting is important. Elections have consequences. And vet the folks that are running for office.
NB: Reporting for WSLR News, Noah Bookstein.
WSLR News aims to keep the local community informed with our 1/2 hour local news show, quarterly newspaper and social media feeds. The local news broadcast airs on Wednesdays and Fridays at 6pm.