Ken Pruitt announces he will file for open St. Lucie County property appraiser position

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. - Former state Sen. President Ken Pruitt, who surprised colleagues last year by leaving office early, is going to file for property appraiser when a special one-day qualifying period opens Thursday.

“Nobody can pretend to fill the enormous shoes that Jeff Furst has left, but I look forward to taking my practical experience as a legislator and as a public servant and do my best to attempt to take on the role,” said Pruitt, a Republican from Port St. Lucie.

A qualifying period will be held for those who want to serve the final two years of the late Property Appraiser Jeff Furst’s term.

Furst, 68, died July 5 after suffering a stroke at his Port St. Lucie home. He had been property appraiser since 2000.

Pruitt, who waited to make his announcement until he told his bosses at Boca Raton and Port St. Lucie-based Weiss, Handler, Angelos & Cornwell law firm Tuesday morning, is the first to declare publicly for the $130,150 a year position.

He has worked for a year as a senior advisor providing government advice for clients such as Martin Memorial Health Systems and New Horizons of the Treasure Coast. He said he would "transition" from that work to full-time as property appraiser if elected.

“I’ve always made it abundantly clear that I have very much enjoyed the public service and this allows me to continue that and at the same time it allows me to stay close to home, which was a prerequisite for me to come home last year,” Pruitt said.

Elected to the state House in 1990 and the state Senate in 2000, where he served as president from 2006 to 2008, Pruitt surprised colleagues last spring by leaving office early, pointing to health concerns and a desire to spend more time with his family as the reasons.

He noted that among his qualifications for the post include having served on the St. Lucie County Planning and Zoning Board and being licensed by the State of Florida in the Real Estate Broker or Sales category.

The qualifying period is between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. Thursday at the county election’s office in Fort Pierce.

St. Lucie County Supervisor of Elections Gertrude Walker said nine or 10 people have inquired about the office, but no one has opened a campaign account.

“We’ve had numerous calls asking about the process,” Walker said. “Asking about what they have to do, but that’s all.”

Candidates only need to be a registered voter in the county and must be able to pay a fee of $5,137.96 if running without a party designation or $7,706.94 if with a party tag.

If more than one candidate for any political party files for the office, a primary would be held with the scheduled Aug. 24 primary.