Election 2026 | Question of the Week 7, Mayor’s Race
Each week through the General Election, 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 General Election, on Nov. 3, features four Cape Coral City Council races: Mayor and the seats for District 1, 4 and 6.
The candidates below are running for the mayor’s seat on the Cape Coral City Council:
Question of the Week: What message did voters send in the Aug. 18 Primary? What is your response?
• Lisa Cohen-Adkinson
Cape Coral needs change, and praise the Lord, we’re getting it. For too long, residents watched their property taxes climb 47% under Gunter’s watch, only to be silenced with a gavel when they tried to speak up, applause welcomed for him and staff, but not for the people footing the bill. Voters said enough. Now the real work begins: Between now and November, residents need to dig in and closely vet the remaining candidates to find the leader who can finally restore the Cape Coral so many of us fell in love with, not the one paved over in concrete, but the community, the neighbors, and the quality of life that brought us all here in the first place.
• Richard Erickson
The voters sent a clear message on Aug. 18: They want a mayor who respects the people, their ideas, their needs, and certainly their right to speak. They have had enough of special interests lobbying City Hall to build beyond our means while taxpayers are left with the bill. I believe that is why our message resonated and why voters advanced me to November. I am proud to be a candidate with no special interests to answer to. As a full time mayor, I would answer to the residents, put their needs first, protect taxpayers, and always Lead with Honor.