In Flagler Beach, Suzie Johnston is elected mayor, and Eric Cooley keeps his City Commission seat

Johnston won her three-way mayoral race with over 50% of the vote, beating out competitors Kim Carney and Patrick Quinn.

By Jonathan Simmons
| 9:18 p.m. March 2, 2021

Suzie Johnston, in a photo posted on her Facebook page

Palm Coast Observer
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Flagler Beach’s new mayor will be Suzie Johnston, a lifelong city resident and real estate agent who won the three-way mayoral race with 50.32% of the vote (787 votes) in the March 2 election.

Johnston — who’d earned the endorsement of Mayor Linda Provencher, who is stepping down after three terms — beat out competitors Kim Carney, a former Flagler Beach City Commissioner who earned 25.51% of the vote, and Patrick Quinn, who earned 24.17%.

Johnston has served on multiple local boards and committees, including the Friends of A1A Scenic & Historic Coastal Byway and the Flagler County Education Foundation board.

In the Flagler Beach City Commission race, incumbent Eric Cooley will remain on the commission, beating challenger Paul Harrington 54.41% to 45.59%.

This was Cooley’s first competitive election: Cooley, who owns the 7-Eleven in Flagler Beach, was elected without opposition in 2018.

Overall, 1,550 of Flagler Beach’s 4,772 registered voters cast their ballots in the nonpartisan mayoral and City Commission race; 934 voted by mail, and 616 voted in person on Election Day, according to the Supervisor of Elections Office website.