Baird won't seek another term

ALACHUA COUNTY – County Commissioner Susan Baird has decided not to run for her seat again in November.

Baird sent out a press release last week announcing her decision not to seek re-election.  

“As a single mom with a daughter entering her formative years of high school and a demanding schedule in my work life, I need to step away from elective office,” she wrote.

Baird’s daughter, who is 13, will begin high school in August.

“It was a very hard decision,” she told Alachua County Today. “Public service, if done right, is a full-time job.”

Baird is a licensed real estate agent with Bosshardt Realty Services, and the sole provider for her family, she said. Her mother and sisters live with her.

“Four years ago, I saw a county commission that did not listen to the needs of ordinary citizens struggling to get by in a touch economy,” she wrote.

Baird wrote that she was proud of her efforts to keep spending in line, renovate roadway infrastructure and focus on economic development.

“Although all of my goals were not accomplished, I’ve fought hard, listened to the people and provided a voice for those left behind by the so-called progressive agenda,” she wrote.

Baird is the only Republican serving on the County Commission.

She also wrote about how she fought for the 30 percent of Gainesville Regional Utility customers who are not represented by the Gainesville City Commission.

She has been with the commission since 2010. Baird ran because she saw a commission that had been taken over by a faction dedicated to a narrow political agenda, she wrote.

“I’m especially proud of my effort to bring some sunshine to the informal meeting process that had previously crystalized too many votes on critical issues before they were publically vetted,” Baird wrote.  

Though she is giving up her office, Baird will continue to be involved in local politics by supporting conservative candidates.

Former Hawthorne Mayor John Martin, Ken Cornell, who also works with Bosshardt Realty Services and Kevin Thorpe, pastor at Faith Missionary Baptist Church of Gainesville, will be running against each other for the Alachua County Commission District 4 seat.

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