Milton, FL - On March 19, 2024, news broke of William Blake Martin’s (D) candidacy in the August 2024 District 1 County Commission race. The Santa Rosa County Democratic Party promptly reached out to him using the phone number and e-mail address provided on his official filing forms. Party leadership developed immediate concerns when we discovered the phone number listed on his filing, belonged to A-1 Inspection Services, an LLC owned and operated by Mr. Martin in Milton, Florida.
Despite that red flag, the Party repeatedly reached out to Mr. Martin. We invited him to local party meetings in both Navarre and Milton. He declined to attend. Our local leadership offered to meet with him in a private setting, we offered to provide volunteers to help gather petitions, we offered guidance on how to properly complete his filing paperwork, instruction on how to build a website and social media presence. He declined.
Sam Parker (R), a real estate broker and current District 1 County Commissioner, is extremely unpopular in Santa Rosa County. He faces 3 Republican challengers, who have been campaigning hard leading up to the August 2024 Primary. William Blake Martin has been absent. His filings indicate the desire to run as a Democrat, but he hasn’t returned phone calls, text messages, or emails. He refused all the resources that his candidacy needs to build the infrastructure of a winning campaign.
After a review and audit of Mr. Martin’s social media presence, we have concluded that he does not reflect the ideals of a Democratic candidate for office. He is friends with Sam Parker and follows Tucker Carlson and several other radical extremists.
He suggested violence in response to bipartisan common sense gun safety measures and shared content with racists undertones. We have reason to believe that he is running a shadow campaign for the sole purposes of blocking the voting power of over 50,000 Santa Rosa County residents.
Operating a ghost campaign is a violation of election law with stiff legal penalties. The Democratic Party will not participate in or give credence to, a candidate who engages in voter disenfranchisement. We call on Mr. Martin to withdraw his candidacy from this race immediately.