Orange County voters will decide three races Tuesday that could potentially reshape the county commission.

These competitions represent billions of dollars at stake for promoters and the tourism industry.

In District 1, incumbent Nicole Wilson has a rematch against his challenger Austin Arthur after neither received a majority in the August primary. Wilson dominated Arthur by only two votesd’Arthur surpassed her with a war chest of nearly $350,000. Wilson raised about $70,000.

County commission races are nonpartisan, but politics still seep into the race.

Wilson, a Democrat, angered special interest groups by supporting the environment over developers and freeing tax money from tourism development to spend on community needs rather than only tourism.

That allowed Arthur, a Republican, to raise money with the support of Republican mayors and even some surprising allies, like Orlando’s Democratic mayor. Buddy dyer, according to Orlando Weekly.

Arthur may not look like the ideal candidate on paper. He was arrested in his early 20s, although he was not charged with any crime, and has faced financial and legal problems running his business in recent years. But Arthur said his problems made him relatable and he learned valuable lessons from his mistakes.

In District 3, two Democrats face off after neither gained enough support to win in the primary. Commissioner Mayra Uribe is against the senator. Linda Stewartwhose mandate is limited to Tallahassee.

Uribe made headlines this summer after public records were revealed she gave away hundreds of tickets to her husband’s small nonprofit since 2019. It’s unclear how he benefited from access to some of Orlando’s biggest entertainment events, since his nonprofit has not filed any Recent 990 tax form.

County commissioners are authorized to transfer two tickets for the county Skybox at the Kia Center and Camping World Stadium to a nonprofit organization of their choice. But Uribe’s ticket transfers to her husband’s organization raised a red flag, an ethics expert told Florida Politics. The county filled the gap end of October.

Meanwhile, Stewart was dealing with her own scandal involving county government.

Stewart went behind the backs of Orange County leaders to draft a bill with a county lobbyist that would have limited the county’s ability to cut funding for Visit Orlando. The bill never gained traction, but it nonetheless drew the ire of local officials. After the Orlando Sentinel broke the storythe county fired the lobbyist in February.

And for the last seat up for grabs, District 5 is an open seat to replace the term-limited commissioner. Emilie Bonilla.

Former Mayor of Winter Park Steve Learya republican, an outraged democrat Kelly Semrad with her $260,000 in campaign donations, compared to just under $100,000 for her.

Leary has the support of the tourism industry and developers, while Semrad is a staunch environmentalist and professor at the University of Central Florida.

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