Fresh faces for Cape Coral mayoral race, 2 city council seats up for grabs in November

The City of Cape Coral saw two new candidates win the primary for the mayoral election, leaving Mayor John Gunter with an exit date for the position he looked to keep in November. Mayoral primary race Lisa Cohen-Adkinson and Rick Erickson will face off in the general election. Erickson won 32.22% of the vote, with Cohen-Adkinson winning 24.61%. The Cape Coral mayoral race has been hotly debated, with Cohen-Adkinson and Erickson trading blows in the months before over alleged threatening text messages. City Council primary election Looking further down the ballot, two Cape Coral City Council primary nominations were up for grabs, with four candidates moving forward to the general election. In District 1, Tom Shadrach won 35.54% of the vote, with Dave Newton winning 29.58%. District 6 saw a closer race, with Liza King scoring 28.79% of the votes and Annette Warren getting 26.52%. The Cape says 'Yes' Cape Coral also said "yes" to three amendments, changing the ways that candidates can hold office. In a 74.2% decision, the Mayor Pro Tem for the city will now be elected by the majority vote at the first regular council meeting following each City General Election. Residents also said "yes" to requiring any council member candidate to be a continuous permanent resident of the district for an entire calendar year preceding their qualification for office. This was a landslide 93% decision. The City also voted for requiring eligible candidates for the office of mayor or city council member to submit a sworn statement identifying their permanent legal residency or domicile in a 95% "yes" vote. To see the full results for Cape Coral and the rest of Lee County, click here. DOWNLOAD the free Gulf Coast News app for your latest news and alerts on breaking news, weather, sports, entertainment, and more on your phone or tablet. And check out the Very Local Gulf Coast app to stream news, entertainment, and original programming on your TV.