Kevin Karnes

Incumbent Kevin Karnes staved off a primary challenge in his first elective bid for Lee County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller.

Karnes defeated fellow Republican Liza King in a rare Universal Primary, earning 55.12% of the vote. As Karnes and King were the only two candidates for the office, Karnes has secured the post.

“It feels great,” Karnes said of being voted Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller. “I put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into the clerk’s office. I’ve been here for 15 years. I’m honored that the voters of Lee County stood with our governor to allow me the chance to do it again.”

Karnes received 61,544 votes to King’s 50,110, according to results from the Lee County Elections Office.

Election results are unofficial until certified.

Karnes said he’d like Lee County residents to know that he’s not going to let them down.

“I’ve worked hard for (county residents) for the last 15 years and I’m going to continue doing that now as their elected Clerk and Comptroller. At the top of my list is property fraud and making sure that criminals can’t steal your homes. It’s something that’s near and dear to me. It’s what I ran on for this campaign, and I plan to make that come to fruition.”

Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed Karnes as Lee County Clerk of Court & Comptroller in March of 2022, filling the seat of retired Clerk Linda Doggett. Karnes, 34, is a 15-year veteran of the office and previously served as chief operating officer, overseeing approximately 300 employees in departments handling court services, finance and technology. He said he has implemented new services giving the public more convenient access to the courts while improving efficiencies for the judiciary and attorneys through video conferencing, online scheduling and online document certification.

Karnes started his career with the Lee Clerk’s office in 2007 as a part-time file clerk while seeking his degree at Florida Gulf Coast University. He worked his way up to evidence clerk, operations manager, chief of courts, and eventually, chief operating officer. Karnes has been actively involved in the community for more than 10 years. He serves on the board of directors of the United Way and on the Florida Bar grievance committee for the 20th Judicial Circuit of Florida. He recently chaired the Cape Coral Redistricting Commission, which proposed new district maps to the Cape Coral City Council following the 2020 Census.

Karnes previously served as the president of the Southwest Florida Young Republicans from 2016 to 2020 and was on the Lee County Republican Executive Committee for nearly a decade.

–Connect with this reporter on Twitter: @haddad_cj