Incumbent Pasco County Commissioner Lisa Yeager handily won her Republican primary Tuesday night, with only a write-in candidate in November’s general election standing in her way for a new term.
She beat Jonathon Deckard, a Marine Corps veteran who ran to stop “out-of-control development,” by a nearly two-to-one margin in Tuesday’s primary. Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed Yeager to the commission in May 2024. A former Pasco-Hernando State College official with powerful Florida GOP connections, she won her election campaign later that year.
She’ll now face Louie Rodriguez, a write-in candidate who hasn’t reported raising any campaign funds, in November. His candidacy closed Tuesday’s primary to only registered Republicans.
Yeager owns a boating company. Before her work at Pasco-Hernando State College, she directed a Pasco County Schools program that helps pregnant or parenting high schoolers graduate.
She is married to state Rep. Brad Yeager, R-New Port Richey, and is the sister of former Florida House speaker Chris Sprowls.
Rodriguez, the write-in candidate, also entered the Pasco District 2 commission race in 2022 as a write-in candidate. He won’t appear on November’s ballot — voters have to write in his name to be counted.
Pasco Commissioner Seth Weightman is also set for a challenge in November as Democrat Air Force veteran Stephanie Vazquez vies for a seat. She’s running to “stop reckless growth” in the county and shorten commutes, her website says.
Weightman faced backlash because he previously didn’t live in his commission district. He moved into his district two months after he was elected.
