Craig Lowe
American mayor (1957–2023)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Stuart Craig Lowe (July 18, 1957 – January 14, 2023) was an American politician who served as Mayor of Gainesville, Florida, from 2010 to 2013; he previously served as Gainesville City Commissioner from 2003 through his becoming mayor. Lowe was the first openly gay mayor of the city.
Craig Lowe | |
|---|---|
Lowe in 2010 | |
| Mayor of Gainesville | |
| In office May 20, 2010[1] – May 23, 2013[2] | |
| Preceded by | Pegeen Hanrahan |
| Succeeded by | Ed Braddy |
| City Commissioner from Gainesville District 4 | |
| Assumed office May 22, 2003[3] | |
| Preceded by | New office |
| Succeeded by | Randy Wells[4] |
| Personal details | |
| Born | July 18, 1957[5] Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Died | January 14, 2023 (aged 65) Gainesville, Florida, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic |
| Alma mater | |
| Profession | Scientist, educator[6] |
| Website | City of Gainesville Bio |
Lowe was first elected to the Gainesville City Commission to fill the newly created District 4 seat for a one-year term in April 2003[7][8] and consecutively to two full (3-year) terms until being sworn in as mayor.[3][9]
After winning a runoff election on April 13, 2010, by a margin of 42 votes (which held through an automatic recount)[4] Lowe became mayor-elect of Gainesville.[1] He was sworn in on May 20, 2010. He lost his bid for re-election on April 16, 2013, to former City Commissioner Ed Braddy after being arrested for a DUI during the campaign.
Lowe also served as Chair of the Gainesville City Commission’s Equal Opportunity Committee, a member of the Regional Utilities, Community Development, and Countywide Visioning & Planning committees as well as the local Community Redevelopment Agency, the Gainesville/Alachua County Metropolitan Transportation Planning Organization and the Alachua County Library Governing Board.[9]
Lowe was a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition,[10] an organization formed in 2006 and co-chaired by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston Mayor Thomas Menino.
Personal life and education
Lowe was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia. He received a B.S.A. degree in Soil Science from the University of Georgia. After moving to Gainesville in 1982 he received a master's degree in zoology from the University of Florida.[6]
Lowe died in Gainesville on January 14, 2023, at the age of 65.[11]
Electoral history
2003
| Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Craig Lowe | 817 | 50.49% | |
| Brad Guy | 801 | 49.51% | ||
2004
Commissioner Lowe ran for re-election unopposed in 2004.[9]
2007
| Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Craig Lowe | 1,050 | 79.31% | 28.82% |
| Richard Selwach | 138 | 10.42% | ||
| Pat Fitzpatrick | 136 | 10.27% | ||
2010
| Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Craig Lowe | 4,078 | 40.13% | |
| ✓ | Don Marsh | 2,960 | 29.13% | |
| Monica Leadon Cooper | 2,529 | 24.89% | ||
| Richard Selwach | 442 | 4.35% | ||
| Ozzy Angulo | 153 | 1.51% | ||
| Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Craig Lowe | 6,110 | 50.17% | +10.04% |
| Don Marsh | 6,068 | 49.83% | +20.70% | |
Runoff Recount
A runoff election was held on April 13, 2010, with Lowe and Marsh as the candidates.[16] The unofficial results indicated that Lowe had 6,098 votes (50.14%) and Marsh 6,063 votes (49.86%), excluding provisional ballots. Ultimately 17 provisional ballots were verified, yielding 12 more votes for Lowe and 5 more for Marsh. As the margin was less than 0.50% between the candidates, an automatic machine recount took place on April 16, 2010.[15] The recount verified the unofficial results, including verified provisional ballots, leaving the vote tallies unchanged. These are the official, certified results of the election.[15]
2013
| Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Ed Braddy | 4,636 | 38.42% | |
| ✓ | Craig Lowe | 4,406 | 36.52% | |
| Scherwin L. Henry | 2,058 | 17.05% | ||
| Pete Johnson | 783 | 6.490% | ||
| Mark Venzke | 128 | 1.061% | ||
| Donald Shepherd, Sr. | 53 | 0.439% | ||
| Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ✓ | Ed Braddy | 7,258 | 54.72% | +16.30% |
| Craig Lowe | 6,007 | 45.28% | +8.76% | |
2013 DUI Arrest
Prior to the runoff election on April 16, 2013, Lowe was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence (DUI).[19][20][21] The incident took place on March 21, 2013 when Lowe was involved in a single car crash.[22] On April 1, 2013, Lowe entered into a deferred prosecution agreement aimed at first-time DUI offenders to resolve the charges against him.[23]