Voters narrowly approved a GOP-backed plan to scrap the County Commission's countywide seats. The new Democratic majority now draws nine districts, and every seat is on the 2028 ballot.
By Joseph Jackson | TAMPA (Nov. 7, 2026)
The short version
Referendum 2 passed 52% to 48%, 253,488 votes to 236,601, according to unofficial results reported by Florida Politics.
It replaces four district seats and three countywide seats with nine single-member districts. The board grows to 11 if the county reaches 2.5 million people.
Democrats flipped both countywide seats on the ballot Tuesday for a 4-3 majority, and that majority will propose and approve the new maps.
TAMPA — Hillsborough County voters on Tuesday approved expanding the County Commission from seven members to nine, putting the incoming Democratic majority in charge of drawing the new districts, Florida Politics reported.
The measure passed 253,488 to 236,601, about 52% to 48%, in unofficial results. Under it, each voter will elect one commissioner instead of voting for four of the seven seats, as they do now.
Who wrote it?
The change started in Tallahassee. State Rep. Michael Owen, R-Apollo Beach, a former county commissioner, sponsored the bill that put it on the ballot, and Gov. Ron DeSantis signed it, WUSF reported. The Hillsborough County Republican Party urged a yes vote, according to Ballot Sunshine.
Owen argued it closes a term-limits loophole that let commissioners hop between district and countywide seats to reset the clock, in a column he wrote for the Tampa Bay Times.
Then Democrats won the board. Neil Manimala and Aileen Rodriguez flipped the two countywide seats held by Republicans, and incumbents Harry Cohen and Gwen Myers were reelected, Axios Tampa Bay reported. Rodriguez beat Commissioner Joshua Wostal by 12 points despite being outraised nearly 3 to 1.
What changes, and when?
Nine single-member districts replace the four district seats and three countywide seats, Florida Politics reported.
Hiring or firing the county administrator, county attorney or internal auditor will take a "majority plus one" vote, not a simple majority, WUSF reported.
All nine seats will be on the ballot in 2028, with staggered two- and four-year terms.
That means Manimala and Rodriguez must run again in two years, in districts nobody has drawn yet, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
The commission will propose and approve the maps itself. The timeline is still unclear, but the lines must be set early enough for the supervisor of elections to redraw voting precincts before the 2028 election, the Times reported.
What critics say
Countywide seats are elected by the whole county, so they can't be gerrymandered, Ballot Sunshine noted. Former Commissioner Thomas Scott told Bay News 9 he would have preferred a mix of countywide and district seats. Countywide Commissioner Chris Boles, a Republican, supports the change.
The bill comes due
The new majority inherits less money. The Amendment 3 property tax cut could cost Hillsborough more than $300 million a year by 2028, and it limits remaining revenue to public safety, schools and infrastructure, Axios reported. FMNN broke down that gap here.
The board also has to take up a resolution asking a court to confirm the county can issue bonds for the Rays stadium, the Times reported. The county has about 301,000 active registered Republicans and 285,000 Democrats.
Voters also approved electing the school superintendent, 58% to 42%, and renewed the half-cent sales tax for school repairs, Florida Politics reported.
FMNN's accountability series on the commissioners who will draw the map is coming next.
Related reading
Sources
Florida Politics — https://floridapolitics.com/archives/829610-hillsborough-voters-approve-commission-expansion-elected-superintendent-school-tax-renewal/
Tampa Bay Times via Yahoo — https://www.yahoo.com/news/politics/articles/3-things-know-hillsborough-election-150706411.html
Axios Tampa Bay — https://www.axios.com/local/tampa-bay/2026/11/04/what-democrats-takeover-of-hillsborough-s-commission-means
Bay News 9 — https://baynews9.com/fl/tampa/news/2026/11/05/hillsborough-county-to-eliminate-countywide-commission-seats
WUSF, Oct. 30 — https://wusf.org/text/politics-issues/2026-10-30/hillsborough-voters-will-decide-to-expand-county-commission
Michael Owen column, Tampa Bay Times via Yahoo — https://www.yahoo.com/news/politics/articles/why-m-voting-yes-hillsborough-083000344.html
Ballot Sunshine — https://ballotsunshine.com/contest/county-referendum-2/