Bill Conerly comes out on top in crowded Florida House District 72 GOP primary race
William “Bill” Conerly won the Republican primary in the race for the District 72 House of Representative seat vacated by Tommy Gregory.
Conerly emerged in a crowded candidate field to secure the Republican nomination with 31% of the vote.
Four Republican candidates were vying for the chance to replace the seat left open by former state Rep. Gregory, R-Bradenton, who stepped down at the end of June to become the president of State College of Florida, replacing longtime leader Carol F. Probstfeld.
The Republican field consisted of Conerly, a former Manatee County Planning Commission member; Richard Tatem, a first-term member of the Manatee County School Board; Alyssa Gay, a small business owner and Richard Green, a St. Petersburg attorney.
Conerly secured 5,915 votes in the four-candidate race. Tatem trailed with 5,382 or around 28% of the vote, while Gay had 4,268 or 22% and Green came in at 3,513 at around 18% of the vote.
“I’m just extremely grateful. We had four very good conservative Republicans in the race,” Conerly told the Bradenton Herald Tuesday night. “My background, I think, maybe was the difference for some folks. So I’m excited to get to work and help Manatee County and Southwest Florida be one of the best places in the state to live.”
Conerly will face off against Democrat Lesa Miller in the general election on Nov. 5.
Miller is the chief operating officer for Scout Comics, a Fort Myers publishing company.
District 72 runs across eastern Manatee County into northeastern Sarasota County, from South Bradenton to Myakka City and Duette.
In 2022, Gregory won the election for the seat against Robert Dameus with 66% of the vote in the newly drawn District 72.
Conerly was a member of the Manatee County Planning Commission for 12 years, including a stint as chairman, but this was Conerly’s first attempt to run for state office. He is the project manager and vice president of the engineering firm Kimley-Horn. He previously served in the U.S. Navy.
Much of Conerly’s campaign focused on his stance against illegal immigration and lowering home insurance premiums.
Conerly collected more than $130,000 in contributions during his campaign.
