Penny For Pasco Approved By 64 Percent, Bilirakis Stays In Congress

PASCO COUNTY, FL — With all 120 precincts reporting, Pasco County voters overwhelmingly approved the Penny for Pasco 1-cent sales tax with 64.58 percent of the vote, or 136,925 votes, to 35.42 percent, or 75,100 votes.

The referendum asked voters to approve a sales tax from 2025 to 2039 with 45 percent of the proceeds going to Pasco County schools, 45 percent going to Pasco County and 10 percent going to Pasco's incorporated cities of Zephyrhills, Dade City, New Port Richey and Port Richey.

The sale tax will be used to pay for new and improved schools, transportation and parks, purchase environmentally sensitive lands and pay for economic development projects to create jobs.

Voting red down the line of partisan candidates, Pasco voters also overwhelmingly re-elected Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio over Val Demings with 64.40 percent of the vote and longtime U.S. Rep. Gus Bilirakis with 68.96 percent of the vote.

The Republican stronghold chose former Republican Florida Secretary of State Laurel Lee for U.S. representative with 61.60 percent of the vote, re-elected Attorney General Ashley Moody with 68.33 percent of the vote and declared Pasco County egg farmer Wilton Simpon the new commissioner of agriculture with 67.05 percent of the vote.

Also re-elected was Pasco County native, Republican state Sen. Danny Burgess, with 65.40 percent of the vote along with fellow Pasco resident state Rep. Randy Maggard with 61.94 percent of the vote.

In the single school board seat up for election, a nonpartisan race, Al Hernandez beat James Washington with 65.08 percent of the vote.

REAL-TIME RESULTS FOR PASCO COUNTY, GENERAL ELECTION

Be sure to refresh this page for the latest results. Scroll through the table below to find results for each race. Can't see the widgets below? Click here for all results from Hillsborough County.