Candidate Profile: Mike Rahn

Mortgage broker and Manatee Planning Commission veteran Mike Rahn is seeking the Republican nomination in the Manatee County Commission District 4 race. Rahn is challenging incumbent Republican Misty Servia.

Rahn is a lifelong resident of Manatee and Sarasota Counties who has deep ties to the development and real estate industry. He has worked for nearly 30 years in the residential mortgage industry as a broker.

"I am pro-life. I am pro-Trump. I am pro-DeSantis. I am pro-freedom," Rahn said in a press release announcing his candidacy.

Rahn is the former president of the Manatee-Sarasota Building Industry Association, former second Vice President of the Florida Home Builders Association (FHBA), and a current board member of the National Association of Home Builders, as well as current Vice Chair of the Manatee Planning Commission. He also serves as Vice Chair on the board of directors for the Safe Children Coalition.

Rahn is also a veteran, having served 13 years both active and reserve duty in the United States Marine Corps, including active service during Operation Desert Storm.

"As a Veteran, I was trained to always be ready for the fight; As a businessman, I learned you have to be ready for the unknown; Today, I’m a candidate pledging to give Republicans a real conservative they can vote for in District 4," Rahn said in his campaign announcement.

Rahn has brought a decidedly pro-development voice to his time as a planning commissioner, routinely voting to recommend comp plan amendments and zoning change requests that have benefited developers.

Rahn has raised just under $60,000 as of the last reporting period, a sizable sum, to be sure, though it is less than half of what his opponent has raised. Rahn's financial support has come mostly from developers, large landholders, and development-related interests.