With the 2026 Primary Election now just six weeks away and the candidate field officially set, candidates who will appear on Manatee County voters’ ballots in August are entering the busiest points of their campaigns. Candidates have spent months meeting voters and residents through community events, door-knocking, fundraisers, and candidate forums hosted by various community groups and local organizations.
For voters, however, attending every forum or debate is rarely practical—if not impossible. To help readers compare candidates and hear directly from those seeking office, TBT has compiled a round-up of publicly available video recordings of candidate forums all in one place. The list includes events hosted by organizations such as the League of Women Voters of Manatee County, the Lakewood Ranch Republican Club, the Manatee Tiger Bay Club, the Parrish Civic Association, and others.
For this compilation, we’ve focused on forums and/or debates that included multiple candidates rather than a single headline speaker, and on events that featured multiple candidates from the same race side-by-side. This may not be an exhaustive list.
Additional forums and debates are scheduled for the future. Please scroll to the bottom of the page for information regarding announced upcoming events.
To replay a forum or debate, click its blue title from the list below.
County Commission Races
• Manatee County BOCC Districts 1 & 2 Candidate Forum, hosted by the Manatee Tiger Bay Club. Video produced by METV. (Featuring: R-Amanda Ballard, R-Ed Bailey, and D-Charles Smith)
• Manatee County BOCC District 1 Candidate Forum, hosted by the Parrish Civic Association. Video produced by Kevin Wright. (Featuring: R-Liz Arnold, R-John Dunn, R-Adam Johnson, R-Mark Stanoch, R-Leland Taylor, and D-Sari Lindroos-Valimaki)
• Manatee County BOCC District 2 Republican Primary Forum, hosted by the League of Women Voters Manatee County. (Featuring: Amanda Ballard and Ed Bailey)
• Manatee County BOCC District 6 Republican Primary Forum, hosted by the Women of Manatee County Republican Club. Video produced by Kevin Wright. (Featuring: Ed Ference, Tara Poulton, and Tony Barrett)
• Manatee County BOCC District 6 Republican Primary Forum, hosted by the League of Women Voters Manatee County. (Featuring: Tara Poulton, Ed Ference, and Tony Barrett)
• Manatee County BOCC District 6 Republican Primary Forum, hosted by the Lakewood Ranch Republican Club. Video produced by Kevin Wright. (Featuring: John Calovich, Tara Poulton, Ed Ference, and Tony Barrett)
School Board Races (Non-partisan)
• Manatee County School Board District 2 Forum, hosted by the League of Women Voters Manatee County. (Featuring: James Golden, Sharon Jefferson, Margi Nanney, Cindy Spray, and JT White)
• Manatee County School Board District 2 Debate, hosted by UnidosNow. (Featuring: JT White, Margi Nanney, Sharon Jefferson, James Golden, and Cindy Spray)
• Manatee County School Board District 5 Forum, hosted by the League of Women Voters Manatee County. (Featuring: Camden Bedinghaus, Jonathan Mullis, and Chantal Wilford)
• Manatee County School Board District 5 Forum, hosted by the Lakewood Ranch Republican Club. (Featuring: Jonathan Mullis and Camden Bedinghaus)
• Manatee County School Board District 2 & 5 Forum, hosted by the Women of Manatee County Republican Club. (Featuring: Cindy Spray, JT White, Jonathan Mullis, and Camden Bedinghaus)
State House District Races (70, 71, and 72)
• Florida House District 71 Republican Primary Forum, hosted by the League of Women Voters Manatee County. (Featuring: Melton Little and Dylan Modarelli)
• Florida House District 71 Republican Primary Debate, hosted by the Women of Manatee County Republican Club. Video produced by Kevin Wright. (Featuring: Melton Little and Jordan Varnadore)
• Florida House District 72 Republican Primary Forum, hosted by the League of Women Voters Manatee County. (Featuring: William ‘Bill’ Conerly and John Phillips)
• Florida House District 71 & 72 Republican Primary Forum, hosted by the Manatee Tiger Bay Club. Video produced by METV. (Featuring: Jordan Varnadore, Melton Little, William ‘Bill’ Conerly and John Phillips)
U.S House Florida Congressional Race (District 16)
• Congressional District 16 Democratic Candidate Forum, hosted by League of Women Voters Manatee County. (Featuring: D-Jonathan Harris, D-Kelly Kirschner, D-Tamika Lyles, D-Glenn Pearson, D-Jan Schneider)
• Congressional District 16 All Candidate Forum, hosted by the Manatee Tiger Bay Club. (Featuring: R-Sydney Gruters, R-Ed Pope, R-Eddie Speir, D-Jonathan Harris, D-Kelly Kirschner, D-Tamika Lyles, D-Glenn Pearson, D-Jan Schneider)
Florida Governor’s Race
• Republican Candidates for Florida Governor Debate, hosted by the PBD Podcast, moderated by Patrick Bet-David. (Featuring: Jay Collins, James Fishback, and Paul Renner)
Upcoming debates and forums
BOCC District 1 Republican Forum: Wednesday, July 8 at 4 p.m., hosted by the League of Women Voters Manatee. Scheduled candidates are Elizabeth Arnold, John Dunn, Michael Harrison, Adam Johnson, Mark Stanoch and Leland Taylor. For more information, visit LWVmanatee.org/events.
BOCC Districts 4 & 6 Candidate Forum: Thursday, July 23 at 11:30 a.m., hosted by the Manatee Tiger Bay Club. Scheduled candidates are R-Glen Gibellina, R-Mike Rahn, R-Tony Barrett, R-John Calovich, R-Ed Ference, R-Tara Poulton, and D-Reggie Bellamy. For more information, visit manateetigerbay.org
Congressional District 16 Republican Forum: Thursday, July 9 at 4 p.m., hosted by the League of Women Voters Manatee. Scheduled candidates are Edward Pope and Eddie Speir. The event will be hosted via Zoom. For more information, visit LWVmanatee.org/events.
Congressional District 16 Republican Debate: Friday, July 31 at 11:00 a.m., hosted by the Republican Women’s Club of Sarasota. The event will be held at Michael’s on East in Sarasota. Scheduled candidates are Sydney Gruters, Eddie Speir, and Edward Pope. Tickets are $55. For more information, visit republicanwomensclubofsarasota.com.
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N_Alice_Newlon
There is still a candidate forum for County Commission District 1 Republican Candiodates today-Wednesday and a Congressional District 16 Republican on Thursday. To register and/or see the videos of the prior candidate forums, go to https://lwvmanatee.org/
Wednesday, July 8 Report this