Manatee County Commissioner Baugh suddenly retires. DeSantis to pick replacement.
Manatee County Commissioner Vanessa Baugh announced her resignation in an email Friday morning.
Baugh, who has served on the Board of County Commissioners since 2012, said she is taking time to be with her family. Her district includes Lakewood Ranch and parts of East Bradenton.
“One thing I have come to realize is that one of the most important things in life is family,” Baugh, 69, wrote. “This week has reinforced that it is time to take care [of] my husband, children and grandchildren and to be a bigger part of their lives.”
Originally from Virginia, Baugh lives in Lakewood Ranch, where she has owned and operated a jewelry store with her husband for nearly 25 years. She has four children and 10 grandchildren.
A three-term commissioner, Baugh will end her time in public office with about 15 months left in her term.
“Representing Manatee County has been such an honor, and I will always cherish and be proud of the accomplishments during my tenure,” Baugh said in her email.
DeSantis to pick replacement
According to records obtained by the Bradenton Herald, Baugh also emailed her resignation letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis. The governor is expected to appoint a replacement to represent District 5 later this year.
Baugh’s resignation is effective July 31. Board members are on summer recess until July 27.
Baugh did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday afternoon.
“Commissioner Baugh has dedicated herself to the service of the citizens of Manatee County for over 10 years,” Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge, who serves as chairman of the board, said in a statement provided to the Bradenton Herald. “She has always governed as a principled conservative and her leadership will be missed.”
In recent years, Baugh’s tenure as a public official has not been without controversy. In January, she settled an ethics charge related to the alleged misuse of public office to secure a COVID-19 vaccine for herself.
The state ethics board agreed to have Baugh pay an $8,000 fine and accept a public reprimand from the nine-member panel.
In 2021, Baugh and three other commissioners were briefly investigated by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement following an accusation that they violated Florida’s Sunshine law when they voted to fire former County Administrator Cheri Coryea.
More recently, Baugh was briefly named the chairwoman of the board in April, after four commissioners said Acting County Administrator Lee Washington and Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge were not sharing enough information with the other board members.
“I don’t like feeling sometimes like the chairman runs the show and then we find out about it after the fact, the decisions are made instead of bringing things to the board, but that’s his way,” Baugh said at the time. “That’s how he does things. I don’t agree with it, and I’ve been on this board a long time.”
Two days later, commissioners voted to reinstall Van Ostenbridge as chairman.
In her 11 years as a commissioner, Baugh served as chairwoman three times. She has also led the Manatee Port Authority, the Sarasota/Manatee Metropolitan Planning Organization and the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council.
This story was originally published June 16, 2023 at 3:22 PM.
