Hello District 6!

I wanted to wait until the results were certified before releasing an official thank you! 

I want to thank all voters who came out on August 18. But especially to the 2335 District 6 voters. And a very sincere and humbled thank you to the 825 folks that took a chance on a political rookie with one broken sign, an obnoxious heckle, and nothing but the fervor to preserve what makes Deltona awesome.

And thanks to anyone who looked back, acknowledged me, thumbs up, waved, said hi, etc. Each bit of kindness and engagement gave me a little dopamine rush that kept me going in that hot, hot sun. 

I can’t wait to continue to uphold and build policies and perspectives based on residents first, special interests/developer’s desires last.

Tuesday night sent a clear message: that District 6 would rather have new, creative experience and perspectives over tried-and-true, traditional, legacy ways that have led to many of the problems in Deltona. Big developer and other special interests will not take precedence over the needs of the residents if I’m elected commissioner. It’s that “money talks” old school mentality that has led to things like over development, irresponsible stormwater/flooding mitigation, reduction of natural landscapes and destruction of wildlife habitats. Much of this has occurred during the last 15 years - 2012 to present day. For a third of District 6, they would rather vote for a cheeky website and a 1 sign gimmick than Deltona’s same-old-same-old status quo ways of doing business. 

District 6 wants a commissioner who can be able to get things done correctly, efficiently and  (maybe most importantly) CHEAPLY. I hope I showed District 6 that as Commissioner, I can do just that. I placed first, receiving more votes than my opponent, who spent close to $12,000 while I spent $734. I reached and engaged my audience for 6% the cost. 

When I say: zero people in the political stratosphere thought I could advance, I am not exaggerating. But YOU made it happen, YOU thought I could win. And I thank you so, so much. I also knew I could win. I may not know every in-and-out of Deltona due to decades of experience, but I offer a white collar, Fortune 500 Wall St., numbers/process kind of skill set. I’m all about numbers, OUR dollars, the budget, etc. And I’m grateful you saw that in my background. WE KNEW CHRISTIAN O’BRIEN COULD ADVANCE! I didn’t need a political strategy playbook. I used all my past experience in Accounting, Marketing, Sales, Customer Service, etc. to carefully strategize and execute how I delivered my messages to you. I can’t wait to bring that experience when I’m working the city, unions, non-profits/501c3’s, schools, county, state and federal folks.

I can’t wait to continue to PRESERVE Deltona’s core values now and into the future. I moved here to embrace the culture and values, and now I want to preserve and protect them from outside interests.

I want to thank Jody Lee for his support and endorsement. For all the voters that voted for Jody Lee, I hope over the next few months I’ll earn your vote. I aim to continue Jody Lee’s passion of driving costs down through tough but necessary conversations. Jody Lee and Chris Nabicht are both stand up individuals who have dedicated thousands upon thousands of hours dedicated to keeping Deltona a safe, wonderful place for families to live. Yes, we’re experiencing over population growing pains. But it’s because Deltona is an incredible place to live, built on backs and experience of people like Jody Lee and Chris. I thank them, and all the Deltona residents that are civil and military service folks. YOU make Deltona great, not elected officials like myself.

I look forward to continue advocating, engaging, learning and growing over the next few months and am super excited to represent District 6.   

On to November 4th…

Very truly Yours,

Christian O’Brien