Who is the Okeechobee County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller?

Jerald Bryant (Republican) is the Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller of Okeechobee County, Florida.

Who is the Okeechobee County Property Appraiser?

Mickey L. Bandi (Republican) is the Property Appraiser of Okeechobee County, Florida.

Who is the Okeechobee County Sheriff?

Noel E. Stephen (Republican) is the Sheriff of Okeechobee County, Florida.

Who is the Okeechobee County Supervisor of Elections?

David May (Republican) is the Supervisor of Elections of Okeechobee County, Florida.

Who is the Okeechobee County Tax Collector?

Celeste Watford (Republican) is the Tax Collector of Okeechobee County, Florida.

Who are the Okeechobee County commissioners?

David E. Hazellief (District 1); Frank DeCarlo (District 2); Bradley Goodbread (District 3); Terry W. Burroughs (District 4); Michael A. Sumner (District 5).

Who is on the Okeechobee County School Board?

Christine Bishop (District 1); Malissa Morgan (District 2); Melisa Jahner (District 3); Amanda Riedel (District 4); Jill Holcomb (District 5).

What is the population of Okeechobee County?

About 40,816 people, with a median age of 40.8; the median household income is $57,984 and 18% live below the poverty line (Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates).

What is the unemployment rate in Okeechobee County?

4.9% in September 2026 (preliminary): 800 people unemployed in a labor force of 16,460, against 4.9% a year earlier (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted).

How many local governments are there in Okeechobee County?

9 in the Census Bureau's 2022 Census of Governments: 1 county, 1 municipal, 1 school district and 6 special district governments.

What cities and towns are in Okeechobee County?

1: Okeechobee. Each has its own page with its mayor and council.

Okeechobee County, FL elected officials: commissioners, sheriff, school board and cities

Who holds every elected county, school board, city and special-district office in Okeechobee County: 20 seats on 8 elected bodies.

County Commission

Okeechobee County Board of County Commissioners

Office	Who holds it now	Next term
County Commissioner, District 1	David E. Hazellief Republican source
County Commissioner, District 2	Frank DeCarlo Republican source	Re-elected (elected unopposed)
County Commissioner, District 3	Bradley Goodbread Republican source
County Commissioner, District 4	Terry W. Burroughs Republican source	Re-elected (elected unopposed)
County Commissioner, District 5	Michael A. Sumner Republican source

County officers

Office	Who holds it now
Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller	Jerald Bryant Republican source
Property Appraiser	Mickey L. Bandi Republican source
Sheriff	Noel E. Stephen Republican source
Supervisor of Elections	David May Republican source
Tax Collector	Celeste Watford Republican source

School Board

Okeechobee County School Board

Office	Who holds it now	Next term
School Board Member, District 1	Christine Bishop source	Re-elected (elected unopposed)
School Board Member, District 2	Malissa Morgan source
School Board Member, District 3	Melisa Jahner source	Re-elected (elected unopposed)
School Board Member, District 4	Amanda Riedel source
School Board Member, District 5	Jill Holcomb source	Re-elected (elected unopposed)

Official website

Cities and towns

Okeechobee · Mayor Dowling R. Watford Jr. · 5 seats

How many local governments Okeechobee County has

The Census Bureau's 2022 Census of Governments counts 9 local governments in Okeechobee 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	1	1
School districts (school boards)	1	1
Special districts (elected boards)	6	0

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 Okeechobee County

40,816people

40.8median ageU.S.: 38.9

$57,984 household incomeU.S.: $80,734

18%below the U.S.: 12.5%

15.8%of adults 25+ with a bachelor's degreeU.S.: 35.7%

$193,000median home valueU.S.: $332,700

4.4%unemployed (of the labor force)U.S.: 5.2%

13.4%born outside the U.S.U.S.: 14.1%

8.2%of adults are veteransU.S.: 6.2%

17.2%U.S.: 8.4%

49.4%of renting households pay of income on rentU.S.: 51.1%

29.7%of homeowners with a mortgage pay of income on housing costsU.S.: 28.1%

Race and Hispanic origin: Hispanic or Latino 26.1% · White 61.8% · Black 7.5% · Asian 0.7% · Other or more than one race 3.8% (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 Okeechobee County

4.9%September 2026, preliminary. A year earlier: 4.9%. Florida: 4.2%.

800people unemployedSeptember 2026, preliminary.

15,660people employedSeptember 2026, preliminary. Counted where they live, not where they work.

16,460in the September 2026, preliminary.

Yearly average unemployment rate, 2016–2025.

Every month, last two years

Month	Rate	Unemployed	Employed	Labor force
September 2026 (preliminary)	4.9%	800	15,660	16,460
August 2026	5.3%	866	15,616	16,482
July 2026	5.5%	889	15,170	16,059
June 2026	5.4%	873	15,398	16,271
May 2026	5.1%	846	15,700	16,546
April 2026	5.2%	863	15,716	16,579
March 2026	5.2%	855	15,739	16,594
February 2026	5.6%	928	15,717	16,645
January 2026	5.9%	966	15,477	16,443
December 2025	5.2%	857	15,551	16,408
November 2025	5.7%	943	15,459	16,402
October 2025	not collected (2025 federal shutdown)
September 2025	4.9%	808	15,618	16,426
August 2025	4.9%	810	15,563	16,373
July 2025	5.0%	792	15,197	15,989
June 2025	4.6%	751	15,425	16,176
May 2025	4.0%	664	15,819	16,483
April 2025	3.7%	607	15,970	16,577
March 2025	3.9%	640	15,804	16,444
February 2025	4.1%	672	15,714	16,386
January 2025	4.2%	679	15,615	16,294
December 2024	3.6%	584	15,733	16,317
November 2024	4.1%	664	15,668	16,332
October 2024	4.0%	650	15,674	16,324

Yearly averages

Year	Rate	Unemployed	Employed	Labor force
2025 (11 months)	4.6%	748	15,612	16,360
2024	3.8%	622	15,699	16,321
2023	3.6%	561	15,122	15,683
2022	3.5%	537	14,848	15,385
2021	4.8%	730	14,398	15,128
2020	6.3%	940	14,049	14,989
2019	3.9%	602	14,863	15,465
2018	4.2%	643	14,820	15,463
2017	4.8%	776	15,246	16,022
2016	5.8%	923	15,096	16,019

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 Okeechobee County

301.6 per 100,0002024. Florida: 275.2.

1,552.4 per 100,0002024. Florida: 1,401.8.

0murders2024, 129 violent crimes in all.

2024 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
2024	129	301.6	664	1,552.4
2023	133	325.6	655	1,603.7
2022	122	295.0	624	1,508.8
2020	204	482.4	1,041	2,461.6
2019	175	422.4	976	2,355.7
2018	202	483.1	1,172	2,803.2
2017	135	333.5	1,234	3,048.6
2016	153	388.0	1,272	3,225.3

By police agency (2)

Agency	Year	Violent	Property	People served
Okeechobee County Sheriff's Office	2025	109	388	36,525
Okeechobee Police Department	2024	13	243	5,724

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

3.02 per 1,000 residents2025, 2 agencies serving 42,381 people.

128sworn officers2025, full-time, as of October 31.

76civilian staff2025, full-time.

Agencies counted (2), 2025

Agency	Officers	Civilians	People served
Okeechobee County Sheriff's Office	107	67	36,525
Okeechobee Police Department	21	9	5,856

Earlier years

Year	Officers	Per 1,000	Civilians	Agencies
2025	128	3.02	76	2
2024	127	2.97	126	2
2023	115	2.82	117	2
2022	111	2.68	117	2
2021	112	2.67	53	2
2020	112	2.65	51	2

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 Okeechobee County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller?: Jerald Bryant (Republican) is the Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller of Okeechobee County, Florida.
Who is the Okeechobee County Property Appraiser?: Mickey L. Bandi (Republican) is the Property Appraiser of Okeechobee County, Florida.
Who is the Okeechobee County Sheriff?: Noel E. Stephen (Republican) is the Sheriff of Okeechobee County, Florida.
Who is the Okeechobee County Supervisor of Elections?: David May (Republican) is the Supervisor of Elections of Okeechobee County, Florida.
Who is the Okeechobee County Tax Collector?: Celeste Watford (Republican) is the Tax Collector of Okeechobee County, Florida.
Who are the Okeechobee County commissioners?: David E. Hazellief (District 1); Frank DeCarlo (District 2); Bradley Goodbread (District 3); Terry W. Burroughs (District 4); Michael A. Sumner (District 5).
Who is on the Okeechobee County School Board?: Christine Bishop (District 1); Malissa Morgan (District 2); Melisa Jahner (District 3); Amanda Riedel (District 4); Jill Holcomb (District 5).
What is the population of Okeechobee County?: About 40,816 people, with a median age of 40.8; the median household income is $57,984 and 18% live below the poverty line (Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates).
What is the unemployment rate in Okeechobee County?: 4.9% in September 2026 (preliminary): 800 people unemployed in a labor force of 16,460, against 4.9% a year earlier (Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics, not seasonally adjusted).
How many local governments are there in Okeechobee County?: 9 in the Census Bureau's 2022 Census of Governments: 1 county, 1 municipal, 1 school district and 6 special district governments.
What cities and towns are in Okeechobee County?: 1: Okeechobee. 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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