FORT PIERCE — Registered voters in Fort Pierce’s District 2 can begin casting early, in-person ballots Saturday to choose between three candidates for their representative on the Fort Pierce City Commission.

Early voting continues through Saturday, Nov. 1 at Renaissance Business Park, Mall Entrance 3, 4132 Okeechobee Road.

Or voters can cast their ballots on election day, Tuesday, Nov. 4, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m, at their designated voting precincts.

The deadline for requesting ballots by mail was Thursday.

Candidates vying for the commission seat are Donna Diehl Benton, 1365 Bayshore Dr.; Chris Dzadovsky, 1002 Jamaica Ave.; and Jaimebeth Galinis, 1710 Plover Ave.

If no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the votes cast Nov. 4, the top two vote-getters will advance to a Jan. 13 runoff election to decide the next District 2 commissioner.

According to a St. Lucie County Supervisor of Elections report, 430 people had requested mail-in ballots before Thursday’s application deadline. Among those, 201 identify as Democrat; 157, Republican; 64 with no party affiliation; and 8 identified as “other.”

However, the Fort Pierce City Commission election is considered non-partisan.

As of today, 101 mail-in ballots have been returned for their votes to be counted.

If you wish to vote early, in person, the Renaissance Business Park precinct will be open through Nov. 1 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. for casting ballots.

Only registered voters who live in the city’s District 2 may vote to fill the remaining three years of the open commission set. According to St. Lucie County, there are 13,095 eligible voters in District 2.

The seat became vacant when former commissioner James Taylor III resigned days after he was arrested in July on charges of online exploitation of an Illinois minor. He has pleaded not guilty and is out of jail on conditional bond while awaiting trial.

The City of Fort Pierce has allocated up to $60,000 to pay the costs for the commission elections, including polling place rentals and poll worker stipends.

On Nov. 4, here are the precincts and polling places for voting:

Precinct 8.1: Midway Road Church of Christ, 3040 W. Midway Road.

Precincts 10.0 and 13.1: Havert L. Fenn Center, 2000 Virginia Ave.

Precinct 12.1: Fort Pierce Masonic Lodge, 4590 Oleander Ave.

Precinct 16.1: Westside Church, formerly Chapel By The Sea, 1717 Gulfstream Ave.

Precinct 25.1: Days Inn, 3224 S. U.S. 1.

Precinct 40.1: All Generations Church, formerly Church of God, 3212 Oleander Ave.

Precinct 60.2: St. Lucie School, 2501 N. Old Dixie Highway.

The Fort Pierce City Commission has five members, including two elected representatives from both Districts 1 and 2, plus an elected mayor.