© 2026 All Rights reserved WUSF
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Our daily newsletter, delivered first thing weekdays, keeps you connected to your community with news, culture, national NPR headlines, and more.

Two new city commissioners are elected in Plant City

Two new Plant City commission members
campaign handout photos
Karen Kerr, left, and John Haney were victorious in Tuesday's elections for Plant City commission

The turnout was barely over 17 percent in Tuesday's elections.

The voters have spoken in Plant City's two runoffs for city commission.

In Group 3, Karen Kerr defeated Tony Smith, 53 to 47 percent.

And in Group 4, John Haney has defeated Camryn Henry, 55 to 45 percent.

Kerr's profile said she has spent more than three decades in senior leadership roles. Smith was a firefighter with the Tampa Fire Rescue and an emergency medical technician with Hillsborough County Public Schools.

Haney is a fourth-generation city resident and conducts auctions for real estate. Henry has degrees in Public Health and Environmental Policy, and campaigned on a platform of sustainable growth

The Hillsborough Supervisor of Elections office reported just more than 17 percent of the city's registered voters cast a ballot Tuesday.

Plant City election results
Hillsborough Supervisor of Elections
Plant City election results

Kerr and Haney will replace longtime commissioners Michael Sparkman and William Dodson, who chose not to run for reelection.

Sparkman has served on the board various times since the late 1980s and said he is retiring from public service.

Dodson is finishing up his eighth term. He first served as an assistant to the city manager in the late 1970s and has been on the commission since 2002.

I cover Florida’s unending series of issues with the environment and politics in the Tampa Bay area.
Thanks to you, WUSF is here — delivering fact-based news and stories that reflect our community.⁠ Your support powers everything we do.