Business leader John Harshman has entered the race for the Sarasota City Commission, running for an at-large seat in the city’s next municipal election.
Harshman, a longtime Sarasota commercial real estate executive, said decades of local business experience and civic involvement have prepared him for his bid for office. He faces incumbent Jen Ahearn-Koch, Flo Entler and Rob Rominiecki for two at-large seats.
“I fell in love with Sarasota and have built my career and life here,” Harshman said in a statement. “It would be my privilege to serve all members of our community on the city commission.”
Harshman, who moved to Sarasota more than five decades ago, founded Harshman & Co., Inc. in 1989. The firm has since grown into one of Southwest Florida’s top commercial real estate companies.
In his announcement, Harshman emphasized land-use policy and fiscal responsibility as core issues driving his candidacy. Harshman said he decided to run after completing a 45-day “listening tour,” during which he met with neighborhood leaders, business owners, arts organizations, environmental advocates and local government officials.
“The encouragement that I received from this very diverse group convinced me that my decades of living, working, and volunteering in the Sarasota community have prepared me for serving the citizens of the town I dearly love,” Harshman said.
Beyond his business career, Harshman has held leadership or volunteer roles with civic and nonprofit organizations, including the Sarasota Chamber of Commerce; Association of Downtown Commercial Property Owners, Inc.; Downtown Sarasota Alliance, Girls, Inc.; The Pines of Sarasota, Inc.; Sarasota County Public Facilities Finance Advisory Board; Sarasota Community Redevelopment Advisory Board; Sarasota County Environmental Lands Oversight Committee; City of Sarasota Tree Advisory Committee; National Estuary Program Volunteer; Sarasota Ballet Board; and John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art.
Harshman is a graduate of the University of South Florida and a Leadership Sarasota alumnus. He is also an honorary alumnus of New College of Florida.
Outside of his professional and civic work, Harshman also taught Taekwondo to hundreds of local families and earned a fifth-degree black belt — winning several national championships as a competitor.
