There’s no fear in John Damato.
When it comes to the race for an Anna Maria City Commission seat, Damato is confident he represents a challenge to the incumbent commissioners.
His confidence wasn’t shaken when an allegation that he provided false candidate information was delivered Aug. 28 to Anna Maria City Hall, 10005 Gulf Drive.
An anonymous letter signed by a group of “concerned residents” accused Damato of falsifying information in the qualifying process, saying he hasn’t been a resident of Anna Maria for the required two years.
Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy considered the allegations serious. He called Damato and arranged for a meeting Aug. 31 at city hall to determine if Damato met the city’s qualifications.
The charter states: Any qualified voter of the city, as defined by Florida law, shall be eligible to hold the office of city commissioner, provided the candidate has resided in the city for at least two years immediately prior to the date of qualifying for office.
At their meeting, Damato provided Murphy copies of his lease and voter registration.
The lease verifies Damato has had a residence in the city since August 2013, and his voter registration shows that he’s been a registered voter in Manatee County since 2012.
Damato’s paperwork was sufficient for the mayor to end his doubt.
In the eyes of the city, the allegations aren’t valid.
“It’s over and reviewed,” Murphy said. “Based on the information I have, I have no intention of challenging Mr. Damato’s residency at this time.”
Accusations of false candidate information need to go through the proper channels at the Florida Election Commission, said Scott Farrington, assistant supervisor at the Manatee County elections office, 600 301 Blvd. W., Bradenton.
“If a claim goes to the commission, it will begin an investigation, but we don’t handle those,” he said.
“We have his paperwork, his oath, petition signatures and all the necessary paperwork. Everything’s good on our end,” Farrington said.
Damato, a retired police officer, was stationed at the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office-Anna Maria substation 2004-09.
The allegation against him apparently were based on a home he owns in Bradenton and a short bio posted on the Sato Real Estate website, where he works.
The bio states Damato doesn’t live full-time on the island but, he explained, it was written in 2010 when he began working at the agency.
Although the website says otherwise, Damato maintains he moved to the 100 block of Mangrove Avenue in 2013.
Anna Maria has three commissioners whose terms are up in November. Damato is one of five people in the race, along with incumbent Commissioners Carol Carter, Doug Copeland and Dale Woodland. Candidate Penny Naylor joins Damato as a political newcomer.