By Teresa Sargeant
Reporter
Vice Mayor and Commissioner Diane Velazquez has announced her intent to run for a third term in Apopka City Council Seat 2, citing the ongoing need for elected officials to pay attention to and address residents’ concerns about community issues.
In a statement, Velazquez, a retired New York Police Department detective, said she was often asked if she intended to run for Apopka mayor or the Orange County District 2 commissioner.
Incumbent District 2 Commissioner Christine Moore will vacate her current seat to campaign for Apopka mayor and seek to unseat two-term incumbent Bryan Nelson, who is running for a third term.
Velazquez’s statement said she wants to keep serving the city as a way of helping citizens remain engaged in what happens in their community and to let residents know that their voices and votes do matter.
“I want to continue to serve the City where I am the most invested and love, the City of Apopka, my forever home,” she said. “I have advocated the importance of being part of the process. My mantra continues to be ‘Your Vote is your voice & your power.’ To encourage our residents to engage in the governing of our City. Reminding the Residents and registered Voters, the importance of their Vote and going to the Polls to cast their Vote at local elections. The local government affects every aspect of their lives and the growth of our city.”
Velazquez was first elected to Apopka City Council Seat 2 in 2014 and has held it since, with the exception of from 2018 to 2020 when she was tapped to serve as District 2 commissioner on the Orange County Planning and Zoning.
She noted that citizens are actively participating in public discourse when voicing their thoughts in person at City Council meetings and are receiving news and information via social media and online media outlets – factors that elected officials can’t ignore.
Elected officials must be involved with the pubic and therefore earn trust by attending community events, doing public service and volunteer work, and responding to citizens contacting them, Velazquez said.
“With my intent to file for re-election, it is my commitment to the public to say, ‘I will continue to prioritize them in my official capacity to serve with transparency, integrity & truthfulness,” she said. “Being accessible and making every effort to address their concerns and helping to resolve their concerns.’”
Velazquez ended her statement by saying that she is grateful for the respect and support she has received as a public servant.
“The respect and support earned in my service is an honor and privilege, one I do not take for granted,” she said. “I embrace it with pride as it is a reflection of the trust given freely to my leadership and service to the public. “
Velazquez has served the Apopka community in a variety of roles, including as member of the Apopka Woman’s Club, Miss Apopka Scholarship Competition Committee, Florida League of Cities Advocacy Committee, the Apopka Charter Review Committee and the Apopka Historical Society
She was a member of the Apopka Chamber of Commerce from 2014 to 2017, Tri-County League of Cities in 2016, and a founding member of the Apopka Kiwanis Organization.
She sat on the Lake Apopka Natural Gas District Board of Directors in 2016 and was re-appointed to the board in November 2024.
In 2016, Velazquez and her husband Ed Velazquez, a retired New York City firefighter, helped Boy Scout Christopher Lamphere construct his Eagle Scout project, the World Trade Center 9/11 Memorial that now stands outside Apopka City Hall, facing Main Street.
Velazquez spent 21 years as a New York City Police officer before retiring and moving to Apopka.
The Apopka Chief is an award-winning weekly newspaper serving the greater Apopka area in Central Florida since 1923.
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