As part of our commitment to providing you with what you need to make an informed decision in the 2026 elections, News 6 joined with the News Collaborative of Central Florida to present the Voting Central Florida 2026 Voter’s Guide.
Tuesday, Aug. 18 is the Florida Statewide Primary election, a mix of party primaries and nonpartisan local elections, such as school board races, judicial races, and county commission races in some counties.
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[ELECTION 2026: Make sure you’re eligible to vote|How to vote by mail|Election Myths]
Florida has a closed primary system, which means only members of a political party may vote in party primaries. To be eligible, a voter had to identify with that party by July 20.
However, judicial races and local races, for the most part, are open to all registered voters, regardless of political party.
Everything you need to know in order to vote in the Aug. 18 Statewide Primary, including how to vote by mail, vote early, and vote on Election Day, can be found in our Election 2026 section HERE.
Brevard County Judge, Group 3 candidates
The Brevard County Court handles county civil and criminal cases. This is a nonpartisan race, open to all voters.
The News Collaborative of Central Florida created a list of common questions to ask the candidates. Questionnaires were sent to all candidates.
Not all of the candidates responded. Where candidates did not respond, we have filled out the information to the best of our abilities.
Our News Collaborative partners at Central Florida Public Media compiled the candidate responses for the Brevard County Judge race.
You can see the full Central Florida Public Media Voting Guide HERE.
Rodney Antonio Edwards
WEBSITE: https://rodneyedwards4judge.com
Note: This candidate did not respond to our request to fill out this voter guide. To best serve you, we searched candidate websites, social media and interviews they’ve done to provide answers to the following questions.
What professional experiences have best prepared you for the bench? Edwards currently works as the assistant city attorney for Palm Bay. He has held this role since January 2017. Before this role, he lists on his LinkedIn page experience as an attorney dating back to 2009 when he was an attorney at The Law Offices of Mueller & Sommerville, P.A.
What role should personal values play in judicial decision-making? Edwards did not respond to the questionnaire and we could find no information about his judicial philosophy.
How do you balance precedent with evolving societal standards? Edwards did not respond to the questionnaire and we could find no information about his judicial philosophy.
What steps do you take to avoid conflicts of interest? Edwards did not respond to the questionnaire and we could find no information about his judicial philosophy.
What barriers to justice do you see in the current system, and how would you address them? The candidate did not respond to this questionnaire and we could not find any information about what he believes to be barriers to justice.
Timi DeAnn Tucker
WEBSITE: Timiforjudge.com
What professional experiences have best prepared you for the bench? I am a seasoned trial attorney with over thirty years of experience. I am in court almost every day. I have worked as an Assistant Public Defender in the misdemeanor and felony divisions for approximately six years. I was a Child Welfare Legal Services Senior Attorney, prosecuting cases in which children were abused, abandoned, and neglected. After gaining significant experience as a defense attorney and a prosecuting attorney, I opened my own law firm in 2004. For the past twenty-plus years, I have been in the courtroom representing the people of Brevard County in family law, injunctions, civil matters, evictions, and criminal matters.I have a well-rounded background so that I am ready to handle all types of cases that will come before me from day one. I hold a Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent rating. I have over 100 5-star reviews as an attorney.
What role should personal values play in judicial decision-making? A judge should follow the law, not create the law. The law must be applied by all judges as it is written because all people are entitled to equal justice, and no person should not be subject to the whims of a judge he or she was randomly assigned.
How do you balance precedent with evolving societal standards? Courts following prior judicial decisions is referred to as stare decisis. Stare decisis is very important to our judicial system because it creates stability and predictability, ensuring equal application of the law to everyone. Evolving societal values should be addressed by the legislature, the branch of government elected by the people to make the laws that govern us all, not the judiciary. An activist judiciary creates an imbalance in the three separate, co-equal branches of government: legislative, executive, and judicial. Judicial activism leads to rulings that treat people differently.
What steps do you take to avoid conflicts of interest? Fairness and impartiality are the bedrocks of our judicial system. I would disqualify myself from any case in which I could not be fair and impartial. An example of such a case would be if I were assigned a case in which I formerly represented one of the parties.
What barriers to justice do you see in the current system, and how would you address them? Activist judges are the greatest barrier to justice in our judicial system. Judges who legislate from the bench create a system in which the law is applied differently to different people based on the whim or belief of the judge. All people should be treated fairly and equally under the law, and a judge can only do this when she follows the law as written.