Apopka residents will choose a new mayor Tuesday — either a longtime officeholder backed by the outgoing mayor or a relative newcomer positioning himself as the anti-establishment candidate.
Orange County Commissioner Christine Moore and Apopka Commissioner Nick Nesta will face each other in a runoff just over a month after they clashed in a three-way contest with Apopka’s incumbent mayor, Bryan Nelson. Nelson, who finished in last place, was eliminated from the race and endorsed Moore as his successor.
Nesta came in first place with about 42% of the vote while Moore received about 32%. Nelson, who had been seeking a third term in office, received about 27%. Moore is now hoping Nelson’s endorsement will lead his share of voters to support her against Nesta.
Nesta declined to speak to the Orlando Sentinel for this story.
The unlikely alliance between Moore and Nelson followed a legal battle between the two where Nelson had sued to get Moore removed from the race over her residency. Their rapprochement was in part motivated by Nelson’s personal history with Nesta, particularly an incident in 2024 where Nesta unsuccessfully attempted to press charges against Nelson’s wife for allegedly pushing him.
During that case, Apopka’s then-police chief voiced concerns Nesta was trying to intimidate him and influence how the police department handled it. Nesta has also been accused by fellow Apopka Commissioner Nadia Anderson of allegedly using “deeply concerning” legal tactics against multiple women in prominent local roles, including herself, Moore and Nelson’s wife.
Moore has also criticized Nesta for his professional ties to Christopher Delgado, an Apopka resident who federal prosecutors say operated a $328 million Ponzi scheme. She also accused him of causing dysfunction at commission meetings and shared Anderson’s concerns about his behavior towards prominent local women.
In February, police were called during an altercation involving Moore and Nesta before a mayoral debate. Two people alleged Moore had become aggressive while speaking with Nesta, according to a police report.
One of the two individuals said she placed her hand between Moore and Nesta to de-escalate the situation, the report said. Moore told the Orlando Sentinel that Nesta’s mother had put her hands in her face, causing her to feel threatened.
Beyond the controversies, the candidates in the officially nonpartisan race — both are registered Republicans, as is Nelson — cited their respective backgrounds as reasons they should lead the city of about 63,000 in northwestern Orange County.
Moore, 65, was elected to the Orange County School Board three times, starting in 2008. She was then elected to the District 2 seat on the county commission in 2018 and 2022 and is term-limited this year.
She said Wednesday that voters should choose her over Nesta because of her greater experience, including her tenure on the county commission and her past work with the Florida Legislature, both important sources of funding.
“I have the background of accomplishments, understanding of a broad range of issues, and the connections which are evidenced by the multitude of my endorsements, to make things happen quickly, efficiently and fairly and move this town forward in a very positive, uplifting direction,” Moore said.
She said her accomplishments include supporting the conversion of septic tanks to sewers in unincorporated Orange County; putting $6 million into resurfacing park trails; and roadway improvements such as adding street lighting, including on Apopka Avenue.
If elected, she would focus on improving senior services, infrastructure, quality of life issues and slowing city growth. She also said she wants to connect the city’s parks with its natural lands and find ways to cut costs during “tight” budget years.
Nesta, 36, a realtor and owner of Nesta Real Estate Consultants, was elected to the city commission in a special election in 2022 and was reelected last year. Because of Florida’s resign-to-run law, he will leave the commission effective April 28, the date the next mayor will be sworn in.
He argued in March that what sets him apart from both Moore and Nelson is that he is not a career politician and will be the change he believes the city needs.
“I’m all about the residents, and I’ve proven that time and time again that I want their voices to be echoed,” he said. “We need fresh ideas. The tired way of doing things is just not working anymore and you can see that tangibly in the quality of life that we have, [in] our utility bills, our infrastructure.”
Nesta said his accomplishments include creating a new investment policy that saved the city millions of dollars over the last few years and introducing a real estate policy that would ensure city-owned land would be sold at the highest offer.
His priority issues include lowering utility costs, making improvements to infrastructure, reducing traffic on roads and improving the city’s water quality.