Field set for District 72 special election

A pair of Democrats will face off in a primary in early December, the winner of which takes on a Republican and Libertarian in a special election to fill the seat vacated by state Rep. Alex Miller’s resignation earlier this month.

The District 72 special election will open Dec. 5 with a primary between Democrats Ruta Jouniari and Margaret Good.

The winner faces GOP candidate James Buchanan and Libertarian Alison Foxall on Feb. 13. The 2018 session in Tallahassee will start without the eventual winner, gaveling into action on Jan. 8.

Miller, a freshman representative elected in 2016, cited commitments as the CEO of a growing business and two teenage sons as the reason for her resignation.

Buchanan is the son of U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan and is the founder of James Buchanan Realty on Longboat Key. 

Good is a political newcomer and works as a lawyer with the firm of Matthews Eastmoore.

Jouniari is a Sarasota businesswoman, philanthropist and community activist.  

Foxall is a graduate of Booker High in Sarasota and holds a mass communications degree from the International Academy of Design and Technology in Tampa.

District 72 includes a portion of Manatee County and a wide swath of Sarasota County, including Siesta Key. Voter registration deadlines are Nov. 6 for the Democratic primary and Jan. 16 for the general election.