Election 2026 | Question of the Week 6, Mayor’s Race
Each week through the Primary, The Breeze will ask the candidates for Cape Coral City Council an issue-related question. In the interest of fairness, each candidate is limited to the same amount of space, about 100 words, for their response.
Cape Coral City Council races are non-partisan races. Council members qualify in their respective districts but are elected at-large. This means all registered city voters may cast a ballot in each race regardless of where they live and the party to which they are affiliated, if any. This year’s Primary, on Aug. 18, features three Cape Coral City Council races: Mayor and the seats for District 1 and 6. District 4, with only two candidates, will be on the Nov. 3 General Election ballot.
The candidates below are running for the mayor’s seat on the Cape Coral City Council:
Question of the Week: What message would you like voters to take to the polls?
• Lisa Cohen-Adkinson
Judge every candidate by their fruit. What have they actually built here? What have they fixed for the people who live here, not for developers, not for insiders? Ask why they’re really running. My answer is simple: I’m not here for a career. My North Star are my young children and what we are leaving them behind. I’m here to fix our issues in Cape Coral, including the failing infrastructure and UEP assessment crisis within four years, restore trust in City Hall with full accountability & transparency, and then step aside. No reelection campaign, no second act, just results. The only question that matters on Election Day is whether you and your family can still afford to live here five years from now and who has a plan to get it done.
• Richard Erickson
This election is about choosing the future of Cape Coral. If you’re satisfied with rising spending, growing bureaucracy, and leadership that too often ignores and disrespects residents, you have a choice. If you believe government should be transparent, fiscally responsible, and accountable to the people, I am that candidate. I spent more than three decades serving this country as a leader, and I’ll bring that same commitment to serving our city. We need to restore trust, protect taxpayers, strengthen our neighborhoods, and ensure Cape Coral remains a place families are proud to call home. I will Lead with Honor.
• John Gunter (I)
I ask voters to support steady, experienced leadership that keeps Cape Coral safe, fiscally disciplined, and focused on long‑term infrastructure, economic opportunity, and neighborhood quality of life.
• Richard Leon
This community is yours, and your voice is what makes it better. You know what’s working and what isn’t. An elected official’s job is to listen, bring people together, and turn what you care about into real results that work for you. I’ll be honest with you, work hard for you, and treat everyone with respect, even when we disagree. I would want the public to hold me accountable, not in the next election but every day on the job, to follow through on our commitments, and to leave this place better than I found it. The public sets the direction. I’ll do the work to get us there.
• Kara Brooke Rodgers
I’m running for mayor because I believe Cape Coral deserves leadership that listens first and acts with integrity. As a litigator, I’ve spent my career reading the fine print, asking hard questions, and standing up for people who need someone in their corner. I’ll bring that same discipline to City Hall: careful, honest, and accountable to the residents I serve. I love this city, and I want to see it grow in a way that works for the people who already call it home.
• Dan Sheppard
My goal is to drive a sustainable economic growth by positioning our city as a premier investment destination, thereby generating the public revenue necessary to modernize infrastructure and stimulate local employment opportunities.