Tampa Bay 28 invited more than 200 candidates running in the August 18, 2026, primary election across our five-county area to submit the following: a candidate photo, a 100-word biography, and responses to three questions:
- Why are you running for office?
- In your own words, what differentiates you from your opponents?
- Explain what you see as the most important issue facing our community and how are you uniquely qualified to address that issue?
The following candidates responded to our questionnaire.
Mark Stanoch
Background(provided by candidate):
Mark Stanoch and his wife, Annette, have been residents of Manatee County since 2008.
Mr. Stanoch has spent nearly his entire career in technology, with managerial and executive roles at major technology companies, including IBM and Dell. He also founded two successful technology startups.
He is the founder of the Victims of Communism–Florida scholarship program, and has recently served as chairman of the Manatee County Government Efficiency Liaison Committee (“DOGE” Committee).
Mr. Stanoch is a member of the Knights of Columbus at Our Lady of the Angels RC Church in Lakewood Ranch. He also supports several civic organizations by managing their websites and backend systems.
Why are you running for office?
I am running to protect what makes Manatee County special while building a stronger future for the families who call it home. That means improving quality of life, expanding economic opportunity, protecting our natural resources, and attracting high-paying jobs so our children and grandchildren can build meaningful careers here instead of leaving the community they love. My goal is simple: to help make Manatee County the premier place to live, work, raise a family, and enjoy the quality of life we all value.
In your own words, what differentiates you from your opponents?
Manatee County Government is a large and complex enterprise, with a FY2026 budget of more than $1.368 billion, an estimated FY2027 budget of more than $2.3 billion, 2,323 employees, and nearly 470,000 constituents. Managing decisions at this scale requires more than good intentions; it requires proven experience in long-range strategic planning, budgeting, forecasting, organizational leadership, project management, and financial analysis. I am the only candidate with that depth of real-world executive experience. I have created two technology startups and served in executive and managerial roles at Fortune 100 companies, including IBM Global Services and Dell Computer. Throughout my career, I have created hundreds of jobs, built partnerships, and made major investment decisions with real financial consequences.
Explain what you see as the most important issue facing our community and how are you uniquely qualified to address that issue?
The lack of high-paying jobs is one of the most urgent challenges facing Manatee County because it affects daily life, household affordability, and our long-term economic strength in two major ways.
- Chronic traffic congestion – An estimated 58% of Manatee County’s workforce does not work in the county, forcing more than 88,000 residents to commute out of the county each day and placing unnecessary strain on our roads, families, and economy.
- Severe income gap makes housing unaffordable – The median annual household income of Manatee County residents who work in the county is $20,000 below what is needed to afford a median-priced single-family home, putting homeownership further out of reach for working families.
The solution is strategic business development that brings better jobs, stronger wages, and more opportunity to District 1. I have been a job creator throughout my career, driving business growth in both startups and large corporations and building partnerships that generated millions of dollars in joint revenue. I am ready to put that experience to work for Manatee County residents by strengthening our economy, reducing commuter pressure, improving affordability, and protecting the quality of life that makes our community worth fighting for.
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