St. Johns County’s Anastasia Mosquito Control District collaborates with the Florida Department of Health in Tallahassee, Florida. provides control, community education, and research. It is based in St. Augustine but serves all communities in the county.
Two seats on the five-member elected board are on the November ballot in non-partisan races, meaning candidates run without party affiliation and the elections are open to all county voters. The current Seat 2 board member, Tim Burton, is running in that race, while there is no incumbent in the Seat 4 race.
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News4JAX sent a questionnaire to each candidate asking about their background and their views on several issues. Scroll down to read the responses of those seeking your vote in their own words.
Note: Responses are sorted alphabetically and are presented exactly as submitted, with no editing by News4JAX staff.
| SEAT 2 CANDIDATES |
Catherine Brandhorst
This candidate, who previously served on the Anastasia Mosquito Control District’s board, has not responded to email and telephone invitations to complete the News4JAX candidate questionnaire. If responses are received, they will be promptly posted in this space.
Tim Burton
Occupation: Manager of family drycleaners
Age: 57
Family: Married
3 children
Education: BS of finance from FSU
Political experience: One year experience of sitting on the board.I was appointed to the anesthesia mosquito control district last year.
What do you see as the top three issues in this race, and how do you plan to address them?
1.Keeping our community safe
Supporting maintaining the services necessary to protect our residence while continually evaluating whether those services are being delivered efficiently
2. Keeping the milage/tax rate down.
While on the board, i voted and passed tax cut/military rate for this year and will continue to do so to remain efficient with the Public monies.
3 Responsible Stewardship of a small district
My finance degree along with running a small business, helps me prioritize essential services.
Making sure every expenditure is carefully considered.
How can you help voters in a way that others running for this office cannot?
I had experience in the seat, although just for one year. I am familiar with with the board members and the small district. There will be no learning curve to keep the business running smooth.
What would you hope to be remembered for accomplishing after serving in this office?
I would hope to be remembered for observing public safety, responsible spending, lowering taxes, accountability, and innovation.
I hope to advance the SIT program.
(Sterilize insect technique)
Campaign website: None given
Campaign social media: None given
Sandra Fein
Occupation: Registered Nurse, Community Volunteer, Public Health Educator, Retired Healthcare Executive, Retired College Educator
Age: 75 years old
Family: Husband: Dr. I Alan Fein
Sons: Alexander Fein, Benjamin Fein
8 grandchildren
Education:
• M.A. in Community Psychology – Russell Sage College
• B.A. in Social Sciences – College of St. Rose
• Registered Nurse (RN) – Mary Hitchcock-Dartmouth Hospital School of Nursing
• Post-Graduate Coursework in Organizational Studies (SUNY-Albany)
Political experience: While I haven’t held elected political office, my extensive career in healthcare leadership, public health education, and community advocacy directly prepares me for this non-partisan role. As a Registered Nurse, former healthcare executive, and ambassador and volunteer for the Disease Vector Education Center (DVEC), my focus has always been on evidence-based public health, fiscal responsibility, and transparent community outreach—not partisan politics. Volunteering at DVEC has given me invaluable insights into the world of disease vector control and the operations of Anastasia Mosquito Control District.
What do you see as the top three issues in this race, and how do you plan to address them?
The top three issues are:
1. Protecting public health through science-based mosquito control. Mosquitoes are more than a nuisance; some can transmit serious disease. I will support surveillance, research, prevention, and evidence-based control strategies while asking the questions necessary to ensure decisions are effective and environmentally responsible.
2. Strengthening community education and engagement. Mosquito control begins in our own backyards. Residents who understand how mosquitoes breed and how to prevent bites become partners in protecting their families and neighborhoods. Knowledge is our best repellent! I will advocate for practical, accessible education that reaches every corner of St. Johns County.
3. Ensuring fiscal responsibility, transparency, and accountability. Taxpayers deserve to know how their dollars are being spent and what results they receive. I will carefully review budgets, ask hard questions, measure outcomes, and support open communication with the public.
My goal is simple: protect public health, engage our community, and make every taxpayer dollar count.
How can you help voters in a way that others running for this office cannot?
I bring a combination of healthcare, education, executive leadership, and community engagement that gives me a different perspective on mosquito control.
As a registered nurse, I understand the consequences of disease and the importance of prevention. As an educator, I know that good information empowers people to protect themselves and their families. And as a healthcare executive, I have managed people, programs, and multimillion-dollar budgets—experience that matters when overseeing a taxpayer-funded public agency.
Volunteering with DVEC provided front-row, hands-on insight into disease vector strategies and the daily operations of the Anastasia Mosquito Control District.
I am not running to be the District’s entomologist or to manage its daily operations. We have professionals for that. I am running to be an effective commissioner: to listen to residents, ask informed questions, evaluate results, oversee public resources responsibly, and make complex information understandable.
I’ve spent my life helping people understand health. Now I want to help protect the health of our community.
What would you hope to be remembered for accomplishing after serving in this office?
I would hope to be remembered for helping make mosquito control something St. Johns County residents understood, trusted, and felt connected to.
I want families to know how to protect themselves from mosquito-borne disease and understand how simple actions at home can make a difference.
I want residents to remember that “mosquito control begins in our own backyards” and that “knowledge is our best repellent!“
I want residents in every corner of St. Johns County to feel heard and represented, and taxpayers to have confidence that their dollars are being used wisely and transparently.
Most importantly, I would hope to leave the District stronger than I found it—with excellent science based decisions, education making residents partners in prevention, and a Board that earns the public’s trust through accountability and open communication.
If, at the end of my service, people can say “She listened, she asked the right questions, and she left things better than she found them,” I would consider that a job well done.
Campaign website: votefein4amcd.com
Campaign social media: Facebook
Ed Slavin
Occupation: Retired
Age: 69
Family: My parents, the late Ed and Mary Slavin, helped organize unions. Dad survived malaria in WWII (South Jersey Chapter of 82nd ABN DIVN ASSN named “CPL Edward A. Slavin Chapter” in his honor). My father got malaria in Sicily WWII as an 82nd ABN DIVN paratrooper. He was awarded three Bronze Stars. My parents taught me, as JFK’s parents taught him, that you have to stand up to people with power or they walk all over you. When AMCD bought a no-bid luxury $1.8 million Bell luxury jet helicopter in 2006, I counted on my Mother’s wise advice as a former purchasing secretary for corporations and for at Camden County College in South Jersey. Our Mosquito Control District got a full refund of our 10% deposit and we learned a valuable lesson about the need for less gullibility, more frugality and respect for mandatory District competitive bidding procedures
Education: B.S.F.S., Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. J.D., Memphis State University Law School (now University of Memphis).
Political experience: Your watchdog, called an “environmental hero” in 2008 by Folio Weekly Editor Anne Schindler (after reporting City of St. Augustine’s illegal dumping of landfill in lake and illegal sewage effluent pollution of our saltwater marsh). Shall we ask questions, demand answers & expect democracy?
What do you see as the top three issues in this race, and how do you plan to address them?
Fighting corruption. Advancing research and education while protecting scientific integrity and free speech rights; safeguarding the independence of AMCD as an independent scientific and technical organization; protecting public health, the environment and wisely spending public funds. How? Asking questions and encouraging open, honest transparent government.
How can you help voters in a way that others running for this office cannot?
Long experience as a watchdog of mosquito control and environmental protection here in St. Johns County, including helping persuade AMCD Commissioners to vote 5-0 in 2007 to cancel wasteful illegal contract for no-bid $1.8 million purchase of a luxury Bell jet helicopter, with no hangar, no pilot, no plans and no clue, resulting in a full refund. Longtime advocate for government accountability and protection of worker and citizen rights. Helped expose Mosquito Control Commissioners’ voting themselves illegal “Christmas bonuses, later reported by Jacksonville Today and WJCT reporter Noah Hertz. Result: rescission of AMCD Commissioners’ illegal $1000 per person ipay increase in violation of Florida state law pay cap for Mosquito Control Commissioner compensation. It’s our money!
What would you hope to be remembered for accomplishing after serving in this office?
Fighting corruption. Inspiring better informed decision-making on spending and on environmental, safety, health and scientific issues. It’s our money. The next global pandemic could be a mosquito-borne disease. We will be prepared with good science, good data and sound planning. We must work with other governments to comprehend overdevelopment, flooding and their effect on increasingly dangerous and pestiferous mosquitoes, which kill some one million people in the world every year.
Campaign website: www.edslavin.com | cleanupcityofstaugustine.blogspot.com/2026/09/fighting-corruption-in-st-johns-county.html
Campaign social media: None found
| SEAT 4 CANDIDATES |
George Tom Anagnos
Occupation: Former corporate and law firm business manager.
Age: 78
Family: (No response)
Education: BA, MBA, JD
Political experience: I have served four years as an elected city councilman.
What do you see as the top three issues in this race, and how do you plan to address them?
The most critical issues are pesticide resistance, erratic storm-driven flooding, and fiscal accountability. To combat these challenges, the district must shift from traditional, broad chemical spraying toward advanced Integrated Mosquito Management (IMM). I propose expanding the use of targeted biological controls, utilizing drone technology for precise larvicide application in hard-to-reach coastal wetlands, and increasing public education on eliminating standing water at home. Economically, we must maximize every taxpayer dollar by investing heavily in proactive prevention, which reduces the need for expensive emergency adulticide spraying. I also propose exploring regional purchasing partnerships to optimize our budget.
How can you help voters in a way that others running for this office cannot?
I bring a combination of legal, financial, and public sector governance experience. I hold a JD and an MBA, and my business career spans over 40 years managing major budgets, complex operations, and multi-disciplinary teams across various fields of expertise. Additionally, I have previously served four years as an elected city official, where I established a proven track record of cutting bureaucracy, improving municipal services, and lowering property taxes. My decades of familiarity with East Coast environmental strata gives me a macro-level understanding of our unique coastal pest challenges. I offer the board professional maturity, fiscal discipline, and an absolute commitment to maximizing resident safety.
What would you hope to be remembered for accomplishing after serving in this office?
A major reduction in mosquito populations and the establishment of an on-going system of effective controls to continue reductions and maintain the lowest numbers possible while protecting the public, budgets, and the environment.
Campaign website: N/A
Campaign social media: N/A
Gary Howell
Occupation: US Army Retired
State of Florida Retired
Age: 78
Family: Wife Cheryl
Education: Attended Vincennes University - law enforcement and military service
Political experience: Former Commissioner om AMCD
What do you see as the top three issues in this race, and how do you plan to address them?
Areas of Focus: Financial Responsibility & Transparency
Reduce Mosquito Population in the County
Ensure we are using best & safest technology & reserch
I will become a pro-active commissioner introducing policies and procedures that will involve and inform the public of the everyday business of Mosquito Control.
I will be active in the community by visiting churches, associations, clubs and all types of events.
I will insure that people will be able to go to AMCD’s website and email me their concerns.
How can you help voters in a way that others running for this office cannot?
Being retired, I will have the time to be accessible to the voters in their time of need.
I will be a PROACTIVE Commissioner.
What would you hope to be remembered for accomplishing after serving in this office?
That I was the friendly Commissioner that did the will of the people and kept St. Johns County safe and sound from mosquito borne diseases.
Campaign website: N/A
Campaign social media: N/A
Merrill Paul Roland
This candidate has not responded to email and telephone invitations to complete the News4JAX candidate questionnaire. If responses are received, they will be promptly posted in this space.
Jason Smith
Occupation: Lightkeeper at the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Maritime Museum
(Facilities and Operations Manager)
Age: 56
Family: Married with four children, ages 3 to 16.
Education: 2019 Bachelor’s in Public Administration from Flagler College.
Political experience: Besides canvassing for other candidates. None
What do you see as the top three issues in this race, and how do you plan to address them?
The Anastasia Mosquito Control budget, especially if Amendment 3 passes, since about 90% of revenue is from property tax. Planned capital spending, a new building, new helicopters may have to wait.
Continue educating the public that Mosquito Control is a public health issue. Think West Nile, Dengue, Malaria.
Continuing scientific research to become even more effective and efficient.
How can you help voters in a way that others running for this office cannot?
I want to be a strong advocate for the outstanding service that Anastasia Mosquito Control is already providing.
What would you hope to be remembered for accomplishing after serving in this office?
That I provided guidance and awareness to a public service not many may think about and served the community that I love. I want my children to see and understand this.
Campaign website: smithforseat4.com