4-minute read
In an election season marked by big fundraising in two of Lakeland’s three contests, the race for the City Commission’s District D–Southeast seat stands out for its modest spending.
Incumbent Mike Musick and challenger Kim-Marie Noble have both kept their campaign budgets comparatively small.
As of last week’s campaign finance reports, Musick had raised $15,850. Nearly half came from his own pocket, including $7,000 in personal contributions and $1,000 from his roofing company. The rest came from 21 donors who gave an average of $421 each. He has spent spent $7,259 so far.
Noble reported raising $9,135, donating $100 herself. Her campaign drew support from 58 donors, who gave an average of $156. She has spent $5,431 to date.
Those totals are far lower than the over $100,000 that will be spent in the mayor’s race and more than $60,000 that will likely be spent in the District C-Southwest contest. In both of these races, leading candidates have outpaced their opponents by large margins.
Different challenges
Noble has been campaigning for about six months. She entered the race on March 31 and held a fundraising kickoff event on June 22.
She is a political newcomer with several jobs, including at the Chili’s restaurant in Lakeside Village and as the lead singer of local band Proper Wednesday.
Noble empathizes with residents struggling to make ends meet and said that, if she wins, she would need the modest $31,533 salary that city commissioners earn. She described her effort as a grassroots campaign fueled by small donors.
“There’s no PAC money. There’s no big business that has given me any money,” Noble said. “So I can sit there and say no to developers, if need be. I can say no to projects that would not benefit the majority of Lakelanders.”
Musick, who filed for reelection on May 2, has the advantage of incumbency. But he didn’t hold his kickoff event until Oct. 2 because of a health crisis.
Shortly after filing his candidacy forms, Musick was diagnosed with nasopharyngeal carcinoma, a rare form of cancer that affects only about 2,000 people in the U.S. each year.
After returning from a trip to Ireland, Musick said, “I kept having a stuffy nose, a runny nose and stuffy ears. I couldn’t shake it.” His wife, who is a professor of nursing, urged him to see a doctor, who sent him for tests.
Musick started treatment on June 17 with daily radiation and chemotherapy once a week for seven weeks. By the time he rang a bell on Aug. 6, signaling the end of his treatment, he had lost most of his signature beard and 20 pounds.
Still, Musick counts himself lucky, saying his cancer was discovered “relatively early.” He had a successful surgery on Sept. 25 and said his recent MRI and CT scans were clear.
Although he watched some agenda studies remotely, Musick did not miss a single commission meeting or vote. He also presided over several meetings as mayor pro tem.
Similar choices
Despite the slow start, Musick said he’s happy with the amount he has raised.
“It’s plenty. I don’t have any concerns about the amount I have raised, relative to the quality or strength of the campaign,” he said. “The economy is tough for a lot of people. The last thing I wanted to do was to raise more money than I needed to raise, just to send five or six mailers to people that they are going to throw away.”
Noble agrees.
“I don’t think local elections should be more than $10,000,” she said. “Even the fact that we’ve gotten close to $10,000 is astronomical to me.”
Both candidates say they’re focusing less on money and more on connecting directly with voters ahead of the Nov. 4 election.
Noteworthy donors
Noble had four donors who gave the maximum $1,000. They were Eliel Santos, a retiree from Thonotosassa; Tom Norman, a retiree and local musician; Joseph Cain, owner of Affordable Appliances in Bartow; and current mayoral candidate Kay Klymko.
She also received a contribution from former school board member Sarah Fortney.
Musick received four $1,000 donations. Publix heir Gregory Fancelli gave the maximum individually and through one of his businesses, Prestige Group Worldwide. Rob Kincart, founder and CEO of A-C-T Environmental, gave $1,000, as did the law firm of Clark, Campbell, Lancaster, Workman & Airth, P.A.
Musick received contributions from a handful of current and former elected officials, including: former State Senator Kelli Stargel, former County Commissioner George Lindsay, current school board members Lisa Miller and William Allen and former City Commissioner Don Selvage (who currently serves on LkldNow’s Board of Directors, which does not influence editorial decisions).
For More on the Candidates
All of the local candidates participated in the 2025 Politics in the Park forum — sponsored by Orlando Health and co-hosted by the Lakeland Chamber of Commerce and LkldNow — at the Lake Mirror Center on Oct. 21.
Election Day
Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 4.
Early walk-in voting began Monday and runs through Friday, Oct. 31, at the Polk County Government Center, 930 E. Parker St.
Editor’s note: This article has been corrected to say Kim Marie Noble received four $1,000 donations, not three. Mayoral candidate Kay Klymko made multiple contributions that added up to $1,000. We have updated the number of donors, which changed the average contribution slightly. LkldNow regrets the error.
For complete election information
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