Tallahassee City Commission Seat 3 candidates denounce mystery pro-data-center text

An unsolicited campaign text claiming to endorse two candidates in Tallahassee’s City Commission Seat 3 race has drawn denials from both candidates, while the identity of the sender remains unresolved.

The text identified itself as coming from “Build Data Centers Now PAC” and claimed to support Talethia Edwards and PJ Perez. WFSU reported that both candidates rejected the message’s claimed endorsement and its pro-data-center implication.

What the message said

The message said, “We trust PJ Perez and Talethia Edwards to bring datacenters to Tallahassee,” according to WFSU. It presented Edwards and Perez as endorsed candidates in the Seat 3 contest.

That wording does not establish either candidate’s position. WFSU reported that federal and state financial-reporting websites did not show a political action committee called Build Data Centers Now PAC, so the group should not be treated as a verified registered committee based on the text alone.

How the candidates responded

Perez told WFSU that he supports a full ban on data centers in Tallahassee and said he backs the Leon County Commission’s moratorium on new data-center construction.

Edwards told WFSU that she does not support data centers and had never received the endorsement. She described the text as an effort to confuse voters and objected to the tactic of associating her with a position she did not authorize.

Those are the candidates’ responses to the message. They do not independently identify who created, paid for or distributed it.

What the reply message shows

Recipients who replied “stop” received a response naming Citizens In Control. The Florida Division of Elections lists Citizens In Control as an active political committee at a Miami address. The record lists Jon Bermudez as the committee’s chair, treasurer and registered agent.

The state record confirms that Citizens In Control exists and provides its registered information. It does not, by itself, prove that the committee sent, funded or authorized the Tallahassee text. The available evidence leaves that connection unresolved.

Why it matters before the primary

The Tallahassee City Commission Seat 3 primary is scheduled for August 18, 2026. The Leon County Supervisor of Elections lists seven candidates for the seat: Darryl “Dar Wavemaker” Alfred, Tom Derzypolski, Talethia Edwards, Maxwell “Max” Herrle, Alexander Moore, PJ Perez and Norm Roche. Six are listed as qualified; Moore is listed as not qualified.

Data-center policy is relevant to the race because the disputed text attempted to connect two candidates with a pro-development position they deny. But voters should not treat the text’s endorsement or policy message as verified without confirmation from the candidates or official records.

How Tallahassee voters can check the claim

Voters can compare an unsolicited endorsement with the candidate’s own public statements, confirm the official candidate list through the Leon County Supervisor of Elections, and review campaign-finance filings for documented activity. Those filings can help voters check reported transactions and committee information, but the existence of a filing page does not prove that a campaign was involved in the text.

A reply message naming a committee is a lead for further verification, not conclusive proof of responsibility. For now, the established facts are that the text claimed to come from Build Data Centers Now PAC, claimed to endorse Edwards and Perez, and prompted denials from both candidates. Who sent or authorized it remains unsettled.

Sources

• WFSU report on the disputed Tallahassee campaign text
• Florida Division of Elections committee record: Citizens In Control
• Leon County Supervisor of Elections 2026 candidate list