When the Fort Myers Beach Town Council meets Monday Rebecca Link will be sworn in and take the seat previously occupied by Karen Woodson. Link received 9 more votes than Tom Brady in Woodson’s recall election on November 4th after residents voted overwhelmingly to recall Woodson and John King.
King will remain in his seat until the appeal filed by former Council member Bill Veach is decided. Judge Kyle Cohen ruled that one of the 3 accusations on King’s recall petition did not meet the criteria as outlined in the state statute on recall elections. He also ruled King could retain his seat until the appeal was decided even if he lost the recall vote. Veach appealed Cohen’s ruling.
If Veach loses his appeal, King retains his seat until his term expires next year. If Veach wins his appeal, Tom Brady will take King’s seat at the next Town COuncil meeting after the ruling.
Last Tuesday, 63.6% of the voters chose yes on the recall ballot for Woodson and 63% of the voters chose yes on the recall for King. Nearly 50% of eligible voters cast a ballot in the recall.
Both King and Woodson have vehemently denied all the accusations made against them in the recall and have filed defamation lawsuits against Veach and former Mayor Ray Murphy, the co-chairs of the recall committee. The accusations included violations of Florida’s Sunshine Law and accepting gifts from developers with business before the Town Council.
Woodson has also appealed her case but Cohen did find the three accusations did fit the criteria in the state statute. The judge did not have the authority to rule on the innocence or guilt of King and Woodson. His only role was to decide if the criteria in the state statute was met or not
Link will serve one year in the seat before it is up for election in November 2026. King’s seat is also up in 2026. Town Council terms are 4 years.