Oviedo term extensions land on ballot

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News
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June 25, 2021

Editor’s note: This article was edited to include the correct amount the city spends on off-cycle elections. 

The Oviedo City Council voted Monday to put term extensions for council members on the ballot this year. Passage would lengthen terms to three years in 2023 and four years in 2024.
Mayor Megan Sladek said residents have voted this measure down in the past, favoring the accountability it means for officials.
The city spends an average of $25,700 on elections that don’t sync with state and federal elections. That’s compared to $3,300 when the city and state elections do sync. This measure would align Oviedo with the state and federal cycles.
Joe Thoma, member of the charter review committee that recommended the extension, said “this will help people who are in office to focus on the office rather than campaigning.”

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Author
Megan Stokes

Megan is co-founder and editor-in-chief of Oviedo Community News, the only independent news source for Greater Oviedo and Winter Springs. She oversees editorial content, policy and staff. She attends meetings, sends out the e-newsletter and curates conversations in the community to understand the information gaps that OCN needs to fill. She also works to create partnerships that can strengthen the bond between community and newsroom.

She has served as an award-winning community journalist for more than 20 years, including as associate editor for the East Orlando Sun and a reporter for the Seminole Voice, the Winter Park-Maitland Observer and Orlando Magazine.

In 2024, Megan was named Editor of the Year by the Society for Professional Journalism. With the Central Florida Foundation and Central Florida Public Media, she co-found the News Collaborative of Central Florida, a collective of independent local news outlets and aligned partners working toward a more informed and engaged Central Florida.

She served as treasurer for the Florida Press Club for seven years and has won awards from the Institute for Nonprofit News, the Florida Press Association and the Society of Professional Journalism. Megan holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the Perley Isaac Reed School of Journalism (now called the Reed College of Media) at West Virginia University.

Megan also loves yoga, running and playing board games with her family.

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