Palm Beach County voters will choose between Republican Mike Caruso, who is suspended as Clerk and Comptroller and faces child sexual abuse charges, and Democrat Yvette Drucker, a Boca Raton Council member and former deputy mayor. Election Day is Nov. 3.
Authorities arrested Caruso on Aug. 18 on felony counts including kidnapping, lewd or lascivious molestation and child abuse causing mental injury. An arrest affidavit alleges he abused a young relative in Florida and during a family cruise. Caruso, 68, has denied wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty. Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended him the day of his arrest, exactly one year after appointing him to succeed Joe Abruzzo.
Caruso has not withdrawn. He is running on his background as an accountant and former state House member, and he has highlighted anti-fraud work and cybersecurity improvements. The state Republican Party left him out of its voter guide, and the Palm Beach County GOP removed him from its guide after criticism from DeSantis and other Republicans.
Drucker, 51, has avoided using the allegations in her advertising, according to WPBF. She said he should have left the race, though she acknowledged his right to defend himself. Polling taken in late March, before the arrest, showed her ahead 48% to 38%.
Shannon Ramsey-Chessman, Caruso’s chief of staff, has served as acting Clerk since the suspension. The office manages court records, audits county spending and oversees billions in public investments.
