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Political novice eyes Lee seat

• Norman Hoover said he’s trekked Lee County neighborhoods in a quest for political office.

Susan McCord

LEESBURG — Norman Hoover, 40, never had political aspirations until last year, when he found out Lee County Commissioner Jo Ealum was unlikely to run again.

Two days before qualifying ended, and before Hoover even knew who his opposition was, the father of four said he took the plunge.

“More or less, I had butterflies when I went to do it,” Hoover said. “But in all honesty, I’m a pretty level person.”

He became one of two contenders for the Leesburg District commission seat, facing longtime Lee County Tax Commissioner Betty Johnson in Tuesday’s Lee County Republican Primary.

The winner of that race might face Deborah Roland, the wife of Lee Commissioner Dennis Roland, who qualified and is collecting signatures to run as an Independent in the Nov. 4 general election.

The father of four took his knowledge of area neighborhoods to the streets of Lee County’s Leesburg District, which includes the City of Leesburg and surrounding areas, south and west to the county line.

“For the last 2 months, 99.9 percent of the fliers — I call them ‘door knockers’ — I have put on over 1,300-1,4000 houses in my district,” he said.

Often wearing his work uniform and carrying signs and fliers he made himself, Hoover has hoofed much of Leesburg district and gathered concerns and insight from many of its residents, he said.

A recurring theme has been a lack of communication — residents knew fragments of information about an issue, but lacked key facts.

“Maybe, everything’s not being told,” he said.

Among specific issues that came up most frequently were property taxes and Grand Island Golf Course, he said.

The county commission Hoover wants to join voted recently to keep the property tax millage rate at its current level. Earlier this spring, the commission overturned a decision to evaluate the sales potential of the county-owned golf course.

Hoover said that while he takes holding elected office seriously, he considers the act of campaigning more like “sport.”

“We’ll just let the voters decide what they want,” he said. “If someone chose to vote for my opponent because they liked their values, that’s democracy in action.”

Hoover said the office promises no personal benefit for himself or his family. A private contractor for Fedex Ground since 1997, he manages eight employees who deliver packages on a route that includes Lee and Terrell counties, he said.

Like many Lee Countians, Hoover was born in Albany, but moved to Lee when he was nine and graduated from Lee County High School, where he played basketball and other sports, he said.

“I just think of myself as a concerned citizen who wants to make a difference,” he said.

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