Polk County Conservative Voting Guide: The Leaders We Need

Tuesday’s ballot will decide one County Commission seat and three School Board seats. Every Polk voter can vote in all four races.

The Polk County Republican Executive Committee has endorsed Rick Wilson, Sam Neelam and Justin Sharpless. In School Board District 3, the party remains neutral between two credible conservative choices: Kate Wallace and Sarah Corona.

This guide does not cover the judicial races. The Polk County Republican Executive Committee does not endorse, rate or recommend judicial candidates.

County Commission District 2: Rick Wilson

Rick Wilson was born and raised in Bartow, attended Polk schools and returned from a 13-year NASCAR career to work on his family ranch and in the heavy-equipment business his family started in the 1940s. He is a second-generation rancher and business owner, husband, father and grandfather. Polk County’s official biography documents that record.

Elected in 2018 and reelected in 2022, Wilson knows county budgets, land-use law and state mandates. In his LkldNow voter-guide answers, he put public safety first and emphasized his working relationship with Polk’s legislative delegation. He has helped Polk expand law-enforcement, fire and emergency services through years of rapid growth.

His conservation record deserves particular attention. Wilson voted to let Polk voters decide whether to restore the Environmental Lands Program. The measure passed with 58.4% support. He now chairs the committee reviewing proposed acquisitions. In 2024, the Commission approved the revived program’s first purchase: 1,195 acres protecting Lake Wales Ridge habitat and wildlife corridors near Lake Pierce.

Wilson treats growth as a service-delivery challenge. Roads, water, emergency response and infrastructure must keep pace, and decisions must follow the law. That work is less flashy than a campaign slogan, but it is what county government is responsible for doing.

Polk needs that combination of public safety, infrastructure planning, conservation and command of county authority. Sheriff Grady Judd endorsed Wilson. The Polk GOP invoked Republican Party Rule 8 and voted unanimously to endorse him. The Ledger confirmed the process and vote.

The contrast

Kelly Quinn says she is pro-choice, called current pro-life policy “literally a harm to women” and had “no opinion” on DEI beyond hiring the best person. Polk’s Young Democrats officially recommended her. In her Estes Grove video, Quinn paired Wilson’s donors with a development governed by Dundee, not the County Commission. Town records show the project’s development rights predated the current campaign and that the proposed amendment reduced overall density. Those are serious questions of values, jurisdiction and judgment. Read the documented case against Kelly Quinn.

Vote Rick Wilson for Polk County Commission, District 2.

School Board District 3: Kate Wallace or Sarah Corona

District 3 gives conservative voters two good choices. The Polk County Republican Executive Committee remains neutral between Kate Wallace and Sarah Corona.

Kate Wallace

Governor Ron DeSantis appointed Wallace to the School Board in November 2025. She is a Bartow native, a Polk County Public Schools graduate and a University of Florida graduate with 20 years of experience across business, nonprofit advocacy and education policy.

Wallace helped expand broadband to more than 11,000 rural Polk households. At the Foundation for Excellence in Education, she worked on early-literacy and school-choice policy. As founding director of Lakeland Leads, now ConnectED Polk, she helped bring IDEA Public Schools to Kathleen and the 3DE career program to Tenoroc High. Her School Board biography details that work.

Her agenda calls for more A-rated schools, measurable goals, strong K–3 reading instruction, parental rights and school choice. She would modernize teacher compensation, reward effectiveness and direct more existing dollars into classrooms. Her commitment is better teacher pay without higher taxes. Read Wallace’s complete policy answers.

Sarah Corona

Corona is a wife, mother, bilingual advocate and mental-health professional who has served local families for more than 20 years. She holds two master’s degrees and is CEO of three mental-health clinics, giving her experience managing employees, budgets and complex services. Her campaign biography explains that background.

Corona emphasizes fiscal responsibility, student achievement, school safety and support for teachers and families. Her plans include transparent budgeting, practical safety measures, competitive teacher pay, early screening, phonics and targeted K–3 reading intervention. Read her public platform.

Wallace brings deep education-policy experience and a proven school-choice record. Corona brings executive management and decades of work with families. Conservative voters can choose the background they believe Polk needs most.

Both candidates put early literacy, teacher support, safer schools and family involvement near the center of their agendas. District 3 offers a real choice between two different sets of conservative strengths.

The contrast

Victor Sims filed for the Florida House as a Democrat twice and was selected for the Florida Democratic Party’s 2026 local slate, which promises candidates funding, strategy, voter data and direct voter contact. He says he embraces “almost all of DEI”. He also supports the proposed one-mill tax and told union screeners its annual cost would be “only” about $250. Equality Florida Action PAC, SPLC Action Fund, teachers-union political groups and national progressive candidate organizations are among his backers. District 3 has stronger choices. Read the documented case against Victor Sims.

If no candidate wins more than 50% Tuesday, the top two advance to November.

Vote Kate Wallace or Sarah Corona for School Board District 3.

School Board District 5: Sam Neelam

Sam Neelam lost his mother as a toddler and grew up in a Catholic orphanage in India. Teachers, discipline and education gave him a path forward. He came to America more than 25 years ago, became a citizen and built the life he wants every child to have a chance to build.

Neelam earned a master’s in computer science and mathematics, worked as a software engineer and built international technology companies, including one recognized by the Inc. 5000 and Deloitte Technology Fast 500. He serves as a trustee of Florida Polytechnic University and Florida TaxWatch. Read his biography.

Neelam wants schools measured by reading, writing, mathematics, civics and career preparation. He supports systematic phonics, daily reading and early intervention. Technology should support research and STEM without replacing books, writing or human interaction.

His platform calls school choice a fundamental right and puts parents first. He supports competitive teacher pay, performance bonuses, less paperwork and stronger discipline. He opposes the proposed property-tax increase, arguing that the district should optimize its existing budget first. Read his detailed answers.

Neelam also wants Polk to plan for enrollment growth before classrooms become overcrowded, restore order so teachers can teach and use technology without letting it weaken basic reading, writing and reasoning skills.

Neelam combines an immigrant success story, STEM leadership and a firm conservative agenda. He knows standards joined to opportunity can change a child’s life.

The contrast

After 24 years, Kay Fields has attempted an emergency student mask mandate, read the district’s Pride proclamation and opposed ending Board proclamations. She welcomed the proposed one-mill tax, saying, “It’s nice to see it finally coming to fruition”. Polk has improved to a B district, but The Ledger reported that only 52% of students were proficient in English and that Polk ranked 55th in English and 61st in math among Florida’s 67 districts. Six terms are enough. District 5 needs new energy and accountability. Read the documented case against Kay Fields.

Vote Sam Neelam for School Board District 5.

School Board District 6: Justin Sharpless

Justin Sharpless is a Polk native and Lake Wales High graduate with degrees in agricultural education and leadership, and agribusiness. He taught in Polk middle and high schools before becoming a Warner University agriculture professor and department chair. His wife is a Polk educator. Read his official biography.

Elected in 2022, Sharpless now chairs the Polk County School Board and serves as vice president of the Florida School Boards Association. In 2026, the association gave him its Distinguished Leader Award after he earned its Certified and Advanced Certified Board Member designations. Read about the award.

During his first term, Polk moved from a C to a B district and maintained the B. In 2025–26, 29 traditional schools improved, ten rose to an A, graduation reached 87.7%, and no traditional school received an F. The district credits students, teachers, staff and the community. No Board member owns those gains, but the progress matters.

Sharpless targets an A-rated district by 2030, emphasizing literacy, employee recruitment and safe schools. His 2026 conservative questionnaire supports parental authority, school choice, discipline, American history, religious liberty and protections for girls’ sports and private spaces.

His literacy strategy uses real-time student data for targeted help. Reading proficiency rose from 41.5% in 2022–23 to 50.1% in 2024–25. Sharpless wants to keep building local teacher pipelines while improving working conditions and professional growth.

The Polk GOP, Sheriff Grady Judd and all four members of Polk’s state House delegation support Sharpless. They know the job and trust him to keep doing it.

The contrast

Kasen Hampton graduated from high school in 2025 and is now studying public administration. He told The Ledger, “No matter how young you are, no matter how inexperienced you are, you can run for this seat”. He is right about eligibility; the experience gap remains enormous. Hampton left iVoterGuide and LkldNow questionnaires unanswered, blamed public-school problems on the Board “answering to charter schools and private schools,” and explicitly supports the one-mill tax. Democratic leaders are volunteering for him and his campaign uses ActBlue, though the party has not formally endorsed him. Read the documented case against Kasen Hampton.

Vote Justin Sharpless for School Board District 6.

Finish the ballot

The conservative choices are:

• Rick Wilson for County Commission District 2.
• Kate Wallace or Sarah Corona for School Board District 3.
• Sam Neelam for School Board District 5.
• Justin Sharpless for School Board District 6.

Election Day is Tuesday, August 18. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Vote at your assigned precinct and bring valid photo and signature identification.

Find your polling place or visit the Polk GOP Voting Resource Center.

Finish the ballot. Vote for leaders who will protect Polk, raise standards, respect parents and govern with conservative judgment.

Sources

1. 2026 primary nonpartisan sample ballot, Polk County Supervisor of Elections
2. Commissioner Rick Wilson, District 2, Polk County
3. Polk County Commission District 2 voter guide, LkldNow
4. Polk County voters approve land conservation tax, The Ledger
5. Polk Commission approves 1,195-acre purchase near Lake Wales, The Ledger
6. Polk GOP endorses in primary, deeming Quinn out of step with party, The Ledger
7. Polk County Young Democrats 2026 primary endorsements, Facebook
8. Estes Grove staff report, Town of Dundee
9. Governor Ron DeSantis appoints Annie Kate Wallace to the Polk County School Board
10. School Board members, Polk County Public Schools
11. Kate Wallace — campaign themes, Ballotpedia
12. Sarah Corona campaign platform
13. Florida Democratic Party announces Take Back Local slate, floridadems.org
14. Polk County School Board candidate forum, 16 July 2026, hosted by LkldNow (video)
15. PEA Victory PAC District 3 candidate screening — Victor Sims, 27 April 2026 (video)
16. Sam Neelam — campaign biography
17. Meet the candidates for Polk County School Board District 5, WUSF/LkldNow
18. Polk School Board takes no vote on the mask issue, LkldNow
19. Polk School Board unveils one-mill tax proposal for teacher pay raises, LkldNow
20. Polk FAST scores and statewide rankings, The Ledger
21. Sharpless honoured with Distinguished Leader Award, Polk County Public Schools
22. PCPS improves, earns another B grade, Polk County Public Schools
23. Justin Sharpless, iVoterGuide 2026
24. Collegian challenges Polk County School Board incumbent Sharpless, The Ledger
25. Kasen Chase Hampton, iVoterGuide 2026 candidate questionnaire
26. School Board District 6 voter guide, LkldNow
27. Local parties take active roles in Polk's school board campaigns, The Ledger
28. Kasen Chase Hampton campaign donations, ActBlue

Paid political advertisement paid for by the Polk County Republican Executive Committee, 6039 Cypress Gardens Blvd; Box 108, Winter Haven, FL 33884. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.