Election 2026 | Question of the Week 10, 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: If Amendment 3 passes, how would you address the drop in revenue from property taxes?
• Lisa Cohen-Adkinson
If Amendment 3 passes, we must prioritize needs over wants. Cape Coral needs to get back to the basics: Police, Fire, Roads, infrastructure, stormwater and maintaining what we already own. But that doesn’t mean saying no to everything else, it means thinking outside the box. I call them “Vanity Projects.” Want Grandma’s name on a bench? Sell the naming rights for 5, 10, or 20 years. Want to name a section of City Hall or sponsor a community amenity? Let’s create those opportunities. I’m already working with the state and neighboring council members on successful funding strategies. We already have a game plan in the works for Cape Coral.
• Richard Erickson
If voters approve tax relief, they should actually get tax relief. My first move would not be to turn around and raise fees or create another tax. We would protect police, fire, emergency services, roads and other basic needs. Then we would go through the rest of the budget and find things we can cut, delay or do better. We also need to control how fast government grows. Cape Coral should be planning for this now, not waiting until the revenue changes. Everyone saw this coming, but they kept spending and spending. Families have to live within a budget. City Hall should have to do the same thing.