BRADENTON – On Friday, TBT reported on Manatee County Clerk and Comptroller Angel Colonneso's letter to the county commission expressing troubling concerns regarding the administration of Scott Hopes. Late Saturday afternoon, Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge, who currently serves as the board's chair fired off an angry, partisan response.

"As Chairman of the Manatee County Commission, I will not sit idly by while an elected official abuses the status of her office to attack one of our county employees," wrote Van Ostenbridge, who was elected in 2020. "The Clerk’s letter is strategic and politically motivated. Recently, light has been shed on Miss Colonneso’s actions as Clerk which resulted in the loss of millions of taxpayer dollars. Miss Colonnesso has chosen not to face the music and take responsibility for her own actions. Instead, she has taken a page from the Joe Biden playbook and is pointing a finger at others to distract from her failures. This political stunt attempts to undermine the sovereignty of our Board of County Commissioners. Manatee County taxpayers deserve better from their Clerk."

Van Ostenbridge did not elaborate on his accusations toward Colonneso having cost taxpayers millions of dollars.

Colonneso Warns County Commission Ahead of Administrator Vote