Bay County, FL elected officials: commissioners, sheriff, school board and cities
Who holds every elected county, school board, city and special-district office in Bay County: 59 seats on 17 elected bodies. 7 seats were on the November 3, 2026 ballot; they update once the county certifies its results.
The Census Bureau's 2022 Census of Governments counts 19 local governments in Bay County. This page lists the ones whose offices are elected.
Kind of government
Census count (2022)
Listed on this page
County government
1
1
Cities, towns, villages and townships
7
7
School districts (school boards)
2
1
Special districts (elected boards)
9
2
Census Bureau, 2022 Census of Governments: Government Units Listing (census.gov).
About these counts
The Census Bureau counts every independent local government once, in the county it assigns it to: the one it mostly serves or where it's based. A city or district that crosses county lines is counted in only one county, so it may be listed on this page but counted elsewhere, or the other way around. Many special districts, such as housing authorities, have appointed boards, and some places have more than one elected body, so the two columns measure different things. School systems run by a county, city or the state aren't counted as separate governments, though their boards may be listed here; in some states the Bureau counts community or state colleges as school districts. The counts are as of 2022.
Who lives in Bay County
186,393people
41median ageU.S.: 38.9
$73,533 household incomeU.S.: $80,734
11.9%below the U.S.: 12.5%
29.6%of adults 25+ with a bachelor's degreeU.S.: 35.7%
$310,500median home valueU.S.: $332,700
3.9%unemployed (of the labor force)U.S.: 5.2%
8.6%born outside the U.S.U.S.: 14.1%
13.6%of adults are veteransU.S.: 6.2%
14.4%U.S.: 8.4%
60%of renting households pay of income on rentU.S.: 51.1%
31.5%of homeowners with a mortgage pay of income on housing costsU.S.: 28.1%
Race and Hispanic origin: Hispanic or Latino 9.2% · White 72.7% · Black 9.8% · Asian 2% · Other or more than one race 6.3% (Hispanic or Latino people can be of any race; the other groups are non-Hispanic.)
Census Bureau, 2020–2024 5-year estimates (data.census.gov).
About these figures
The American Community Survey asks about 3.5 million households a year about who lives there, their work, income, schooling and housing. The 5-year estimates pool 2020–2024 answers so that every county and district has enough of them. They're estimates with a (larger for smaller places), and they're different from the once-a-decade census count. "Median" means half are above and half below. Household income is before taxes and includes everyone in the household. The unemployment share here is the survey's five-year average, so it differs from the monthly rate in the BLS jobs report. Race and Hispanic origin are as people describe themselves.
Health insurance means any coverage, private or public (such as Medicaid or Medicare), when people answered; the share is of everyone except people on active military duty and people living in institutions such as prisons and nursing homes. The housing shares are of renting households, and of homeowners with a mortgage, for whom the Census Bureau can compute them (households with no income, or renters who pay no cash rent, are left out). Rent here is gross rent, rent plus utilities; owner costs include the mortgage, property taxes, insurance, utilities and fees.
Jobs in Bay County
4.2%September 2026, preliminary. A year earlier: 4.1%. Florida: 4.2%.
91,289people employedSeptember 2026, preliminary. Counted where they live, not where they work.
95,264in the September 2026, preliminary.
Yearly average unemployment rate, 2016–2025.
Every month, last two years
Month
Rate
Unemployed
Employed
Labor force
September 2026 (preliminary)
4.2%
3,975
91,289
95,264
August 2026
4.4%
4,216
91,090
95,306
July 2026
4.6%
4,313
90,411
94,724
June 2026
4.5%
4,277
91,330
95,607
May 2026
4.4%
4,159
90,372
94,531
April 2026
4.6%
4,338
89,904
94,242
March 2026
4.5%
4,256
89,407
93,663
February 2026
5.1%
4,707
88,135
92,842
January 2026
5.5%
5,032
87,160
92,192
December 2025
4.8%
4,426
87,798
92,224
November 2025
5.1%
4,666
87,686
92,352
October 2025
not collected (2025 federal shutdown)
September 2025
4.1%
3,875
90,059
93,934
August 2025
4.2%
3,946
90,508
94,454
July 2025
4.0%
3,812
90,836
94,648
June 2025
3.8%
3,608
91,483
95,091
May 2025
3.4%
3,195
91,014
94,209
April 2025
3.3%
3,084
90,954
94,038
March 2025
3.4%
3,169
90,507
93,676
February 2025
3.6%
3,339
88,612
91,951
January 2025
3.9%
3,559
88,287
91,846
December 2024
3.3%
3,006
88,881
91,887
November 2024
3.5%
3,261
89,461
92,722
October 2024
3.3%
3,120
90,919
94,039
Yearly averages
Year
Rate
Unemployed
Employed
Labor force
2025 (11 months)
4.0%
3,698
89,795
93,493
2024
3.3%
3,082
89,707
92,789
2023
2.9%
2,622
88,334
90,956
2022
2.9%
2,519
85,701
88,220
2021
4.1%
3,496
82,641
86,137
2020
6.3%
5,175
77,568
82,743
2019
3.8%
3,226
81,764
84,990
2018
4.1%
3,656
85,639
89,295
2017
4.2%
3,727
85,674
89,401
2016
4.8%
4,262
85,338
89,600
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, : BLS publishes county figures only that way, so they rise and fall with the seasons; compare a month with the same month a year earlier rather than with the month before. Florida's figure above is on the same basis; seasonally adjusted, as in BLS's monthly state release, it was 4.4% in September 2026. The latest month is preliminary and is revised the next month, and BLS revises earlier years each spring. People are counted where they live. October 2025 wasn't collected during the 2025 federal government shutdown, so 2025's yearly average covers 11 months.
Crime reported in Bay County
410.2 per 100,0002019. Florida: 378.2.
2,828.4 per 100,0002019. Florida: 2,144.8.
8murders2019, 826 violent crimes in all.
2019 is the latest year with complete reporting here: at least one of the county's police agencies didn't send the FBI a full year of figures since, so later totals would be undercounts.
Earlier years
Year
Violent
Rate
Property
Rate
2019
826
410.2
5,696
2,828.4
2018
755
375.9
5,892
2,933.5
2017
899
444.0
6,753
3,334.8
2016
897
448.7
6,560
3,281.4
By police agency (7)
Agency
Year
Violent
Property
People served
Bay County Sheriff's Office
2025
230
846
106,785
Panama City Police Department
2025
116
496
38,146
Lynn Haven Police Department
2024
30
136
21,152
Panama City Beach Police Department
2020
131
756
12,703
Springfield Police Department
2025
39
109
8,614
Parker Police Department
2025
8
61
5,036
Mexico Beach Police Department
2019
4
29
1,243
Crimes to the county's city and county police agencies (FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, Return A), per 100,000 people they serve. Years with incomplete reporting are left out. Crime in Florida · the U.S.
Police staffing
2.28 per 1,000 residents2016, 7 agencies serving 184,588 people.
421sworn officers2016, full-time, as of October 31.
138civilian staff2016, full-time.
2016 is the latest year every agency here sent the FBI its staff count.
Agencies counted (7), 2016
Agency
Officers
Civilians
People served
Bay County Sheriff's Office
207
66
97,003
Panama City Police Department
95
36
38,847
Panama City Beach Police Department
58
19
12,844
Lynn Haven Police Department
26
10
20,496
Springfield Police Department
19
5
9,550
Parker Police Department
9
1
4,661
Mexico Beach Police Department
7
1
1,187
Full-time employees of the county's city police departments and sheriff's office, as each reported them to the FBI (Uniform Crime Reporting, Law Enforcement Employees), per 1,000 people in the areas those agencies serve (the FBI's population figures). A year is shown only when every one of these agencies sent a count; a count under half or over double the agency's own counts in nearby years is treated as not sent. Towns policed under contract by another agency are counted through that agency. State police, campus and other agencies aren't included. Sheriffs' offices often also run the county jail and courthouse security, so their staff counts include those jobs.
Quick answers
Who is the Bay County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller?
Bill Kinsaul (Republican) is the Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller of Bay County, Florida.
Who is the Bay County Property Appraiser?
Dan Sowell (Republican) is the Property Appraiser of Bay County, Florida.
Who is the Bay County Sheriff?
Tommy Ford (Republican) is the Sheriff of Bay County, Florida.
Who is the Bay County Supervisor of Elections?
Nina Ward (Republican) is the Supervisor of Elections of Bay County, Florida.
Who is the Bay County Tax Collector?
Chuck Perdue (Republican) is the Tax Collector of Bay County, Florida.
Who are the Bay County commissioners?
Daniel Raffield (District 1); Robert Carroll (District 2); Doug Crosby (District 3); Doug Moore (District 4); Clair Pease (District 5).
Who is on the Bay County School Board?
Jerry Register (District 1); Ann Leonard (District 2); Christopher Moore (District 3); Winston Chester (District 4); Steve Moss (District 5); Mark McQueen (Superintendent of Schools).
What is the population of Bay County?
About 186,393 people, with a median age of 41; the median household income is $73,533 and 11.9% live below the poverty line (Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Bay County?
4.2% in September 2026 (preliminary): 3,975 people unemployed in a labor force of 95,264, against 4.1% a year earlier (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted).
How many local governments are there in Bay County?
19 in the Census Bureau's 2022 Census of Governments: 1 county, 7 municipal, 2 school district and 9 special district governments.
What cities and towns are in Bay County?
7: Callaway, Lynn Haven, Mexico Beach, Panama City, Panama City Beach, Parker, Springfield. Each has its own page with its mayor and council.
Officeholders as of November 6, 2026, from each county Supervisor of Elections' official lists and candidate filings and the bodies' own websites; each name links to its source. Officials change between elections (appointments, resignations), and the body's own website is the authority. Party is shown only for offices elected on a partisan ballot.
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