Carolyn DiPaoloIncumbents Ward and Fox face challengers in March 10 election.
Two spots on the West Palm Beach City Commission are on the line March 10.
Voters across the city will choose between District 1 incumbent Cathleen Ward and Martina Tate-Walker. In District 3, newcomer Roger Lee Jackson III is challenging Commissioner Christy Fox.
All four candidates were born in Palm Beach County.
There is no early voting for the March election, and the voter registration date has passed. Voters can request a mail-in ballot from the Palm Beach County supervisor of elections until 5 pm Thursday, Feb. 26.
West Palm Beach city commissioners earn $48,920 a year.
District 1 – Ward vs. Tate-Walker
Ward, who was first elected to the commission in 2022, is seeking a third term. She is a partner at the Lippes Mathias law firm in West Palm Beach.
She serves on the board of the Health Care District of Palm Beach County.
This is Tate-Walker’s sixth run for City Commission. She lost to Ward in 2022 and ran against her in 2024 before dropping out of the race. Tate-Walker told Stet News that she ended her 2024 campaign because she accepted a job offer from a mysterious nonprofit on the condition that she drop out.
Tate-Walker is a retired government employee who worked in human resources. She is an ordained minister.
Ward counts accomplishments during her term that include the launch of the redevelopment of Currie Park, development of city-owned property at the west end of the Northwood commercial district, reenvisioning the Broadway corridor and focusing on public safety.
“I worked with the CRA to be able to divert funds toward private security. It had just been within the Northwood Village area. But, we were, like, ‘We need it along the Broadway corridor. We need it in Pleasant City.’”
Security was added there in 2024.
The city was already working toward many of the goals, Ward said, “But I think that I was able to get them across the finish line.”
Tate-Walker’s campaign is focused on helping homeless people, community service and connecting residents to city services.
She wants the city commission to connect with residents by visiting neighborhoods en masse.
“Bring it to us,” she said during a candidate forum Wednesday, presented by the Downtown Neighborhood Association. “You don’t really get understanding when you’re in the dais. …You come there, and you talk to us about what is going on in the city.”
Ward sees the biggest challenge for the city as affordability, and in an interview with Stet News, she invited residents to be involved.
“I don’t want anybody to ever think, ‘Oh, I’m just gonna let government do it.’ It always needs to be a partnership,” Ward said. ”Everything I do is in partnership with the residents, because they are the combined eyes and ears and the knowledge base that helps me do my job better. And so when they stay engaged, I’m able to do a heck of a lot better job.”
Tate-Walker pledged to improve the city’s education, economic development, job creation, community engagement and public safety.
“I believe that together, we can build a future where West Palm Beach residents feel secure, supported and proud of their city,” she said in a campaign statement.
Ward has raised $30,450 in direct contributions through Feb. 6. Tate-Walker has raised $3,450.
You can find Ward’s answer to a League of Women Voters questionnaire.
Tate-Walker did not submit answers to the questions.
District 3 – Fox vs. Jackson
Fox was elected in 2020 and took office during the city’s first virtual swearing-in because of COVID-19. She is seeking her fourth term.
Her background is in public relations, including as vice president of a nonprofit dedicated to continuing the legacy of the World War II “Monuments Men.”
Fox is the city’s representative on the local transportation planning agency, the Palm Beach Metropolitan Planning Organization.
Jackson, Fox’s challenger, is an Army veteran, who served as a paratrooper and a paralegal. “I was jumping out of planes and serving people paperwork,” he said at the candidate forum.
Jackson is the grant manager for the Legal Aid Society of Palm Beach County, where he also manages the Heirs’ Property Project to preserve homeownership. He is the president of Night Runners WPB, a local run club.
Fox counts among her accomplishments pushing back on a plan to put a marina on the public waterfront. She supported a ban on marijuana dispensaries on Clematis Street and she said she is working with the Downtown Development Agency on updating the city’s noise ordinance.
“I was against the marina from the beginning, and I stood with you on that,” Fox said at the candidate forum. “I want to continue to do the work that we started, and I will continue to stand by your side and listen and make sure that you always have a voice.”
During the candidate forum, Jackson was positive about the city’s performance in public safety and outreach to homeless people.
“The city has done a tremendous job and has made tremendous progress when it comes to homelessness,” he said. “I know there’s a state law that prohibits public camping, but my approach as city commissioner would be to enforce the law, but in the most humane way possible.”
He also said the city can do a better job of inspiring young leaders. “I don’t want people to grow up and then feel like they need to move away because they don’t see opportunities here for them.”
In the League questionnaire, Fox said the greatest issue West Palm Beach faces is climate-driven flooding and sea-level rise.
It poses an immediate and compounding risk to the city’s economy, infrastructure, housing stability and quality of life, Fox wrote.
“Addressing this threat requires a proactive, integrated approach that treats climate resilience as both an infrastructure and equity issue.”
Jackson said West Palm Beach’s greatest challenge is the growing gap between rapid development and long-term community sustainability.
The city must continue to emphasize workforce and attainable housing, he said, strengthen partnerships with local businesses and community organizations, and ensure decisions reflect all residents.
Fox has raised $34,125 in direct contributions through Feb. 6. Jackson has raised $9,498.
You can find all of Ward’s and Jackson’s answers to the League of Women Voters questionnaire here.
District 5 — Steve Sylvester
Sylvester also participated in Wednesday’s candidate forum. He was automatically elected to the commission last year when his lone challenger, Matthew Ferrer, dropped out of the race for the seat now held by term-limited Commissioner Christina Lambert, who is running for mayor.
He is a physical therapist and adjunct professor at Palm Beach Atlantic University.
Sylvester echoed Ward’s encouragement to city residents to get involved. He said a recent survey by the Downtown Development Authority to gauge interest in a dog park went to more than 10,000 residents. Only 248 people responded.
He ran for office, he said, because “I’ve seen changes throughout the decades I’ve lived here, and I can tell you for certain, we’re moving forward, and I want to keep it moving forward.”
Fox, Ward and Sylvester are represented by Cornerstone Solutions, the high-voltage campaign management firm run by Rick Asnani.
I am a co-founder, writer and editor for Stet News. I am also a former senior editor at The Palm Beach Post. For 20 years, I oversaw some of the most consequential stories published by the paper, including the “Corruption County” reporting project that led to multiple arrests of elected officials. I am a member of the Leadership Palm Beach County Class of 2013. I live in West Palm Beach with my husband, Bill DiPaolo.
