NORTHEAST TALLAHASSEE, FL — Campaign signs are appearing everywhere from gas stations to front yards as candidates try to win votes, but Tallahassee residents are far from united on what matters most this election season.
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Candidates are running on a range of issues, including affordability, public safety and environmental protection.
Conversations around the city reveal that voter's priorities vary widely.
Navy veteran Bill Guilday recently settled in the Killearn Lakes area to be closer to his daughter and grandchildren. He says he already knows who he supports on the state and national level and would like a candidate to reflect those political views.
But locally, he says he would like to see more development on his end of town.
"The only improvement I'd like to see is more stores coming to this end of town because everything I do has to go to the other end of town," Guilday said.
Retired nurse Sheri Cook said healthcare access remains her top concern, especially when it comes to specialized pediatric care for newborns.
"We're lucky that we have the basics that we have here that are good and sound, but we need to have better access if we're going to help all these people. They need access to the specialties," Cook said.
Other residents are looking for solutions to public safety issues and changes in community culture.
“If we can treat each other with respect and listen to one another, I truly believe we can see a difference, and we'll realize the similarities more than the differences,” Calvin Calhoun, Jr. said. "One of the things I believe is you cannot legislate morality in people's homes. You can't do that. This has to be something within the home that starts in the home.”
Other residents who were not willing to go on camera expressed concerns about over-development, what is being taught in schools, the placement of smoke shops and liquor stores in the Southside community, a lack of pharmacies, and limited access to transportation.
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