County Council District 1 Heads to a Runoff as Anderson Outpaces Incumbent Dempsey

Volusia County's District 1 seat is one of three County Council races headed to a November runoff after the Aug. 18 primary failed to produce a majority winner. Challenger Wendy Anderson led the three-way field with 47.58% of the vote, more than 3,000 votes ahead of incumbent Don Dempsey, who finished with 32.07%. A third candidate, Melissa Thorne, took just over 20% and was eliminated from contention.

Who's running

Wendy Anderson is a Stetson University professor who chairs the school's Environmental Science and Studies department. She also serves as an elected supervisor on the Volusia County Soil & Water Conservation District Board of Supervisors, a role she's held since 2020. Anderson has cast herself as a science-driven, non-establishment alternative, arguing the county's current growth trajectory has come without adequate planning and that natural resources like water and flood-prone land haven't been protected.

Don Dempsey is a prosecutor-turned-defense attorney who runs a law office in DeLand. He first won the District 1 seat in 2022 in what was considered an upset over then-incumbent Barbara Girtman, taking 58% of the vote despite being outspent roughly 4-to-1. He began his four-year term in January 2023. Dempsey has previously championed the county's proposed motocross facility, a project tied to his son's involvement in the sport.

Melissa Thorne, a nurse and yoga therapist, rounded out the field but did not advance.

What District 1 covers

District 1 spans a large swath of northwest and west-central Volusia County, including DeLand, Orange City, Lake Helen, Pierson and the northern half of DeBary, along with unincorporated communities such as Astor, DeLeon Springs, Emporia, Seville and Barberville.

What Anderson is campaigning on

Anderson has centered her campaign heavily on water management, flooding and what she describes as sustainable, planned growth rather than unchecked sprawl. She's launching a series of town hall meetings across the district this fall focused specifically on flooding and water issues, starting in DeLand and continuing in Orange City, Pierson, Lake Helen and DeLeon Springs. Anderson has said she wants to shift the growth conversation toward redeveloping existing communities and strengthening infrastructure, rather than continuing to push development into undeveloped land.

She has also positioned herself as an accountability-focused candidate, saying she's watched county leaders repeatedly disregard her professional advice on development and environmental matters in favor of what she describes as special interests and political priorities.

A notable pattern this cycle

District 1 isn't the only Volusia County Council race headed to a runoff. The at-large seat and District 3 also failed to produce a majority winner in the primary, meaning voters will decide three County Council seats in November.

What's next

Anderson and Dempsey will face off again on the Nov. 3 general election ballot. With Thorne's roughly 20% of primary voters now up for grabs, how those voters break could prove decisive in a race where Anderson currently holds a substantial lead.

The Volusia Voice will continue covering the District 1 runoff, along with the county's other two runoff races, as November approaches.