Palm Beach County government operates on a scale most residents never see directly. The seven-member Board of County Commissioners adopts a roughly $9 billion annual budget, sets countywide policy, and governs more than 1.6 million people — Florida's third-most-populous county and one with a coastline, an agricultural belt, an international airport, the Sheriff's Office, and a transit network all under its responsibility.
Boca Post covers the BCC's votes and ordinances, the county's land-use and growth decisions, the Agricultural Reserve, the Solid Waste Authority, the Zoning Board, the constitutional officers elected countywide, and the County Administrator's office, which manages day-to-day operations across more than 7,100 county positions. Our reporting draws on commission meeting agendas, adopted ordinances, the county's published budget, the Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller's records, and public-records requests filed with the county.
For city-level government coverage, see Boca Raton government, Boynton Beach government, and Delray Beach government. For Palm Beach County news across all topics, see Palm Beach County news.
The Board of County Commissioners meets on the first and third Tuesdays of each month at the Robert Weisman Palm Beach County Governmental Center, 301 North Olive Avenue, West Palm Beach, with workshops on the fourth Tuesday and Zoning Board hearings on the fourth Thursday. Agendas and live video are posted at discover.pbc.gov.
Latest Palm Beach County Government News
The Board of County Commissioners
Palm Beach County is governed by seven commissioners elected by district to staggered four-year terms, with a two-term limit. Unlike most city mayors in Florida, the Palm Beach County Mayor is a largely ceremonial role chosen each November by the commission itself; the Mayor chairs meetings and signs official documents, but holds no executive authority over county departments.
Day-to-day operations are run by an appointed County Administrator, currently Joseph Abruzzo, who reports directly to the board. The current Mayor and Vice Mayor were elected by their colleagues at the board's November 18, 2025 organizational meeting.
Sara Baxter
Role: Mayor, Commissioner — District 6
Republican commissioner representing District 6 in the central-western portion of the county. Elected Mayor by the BCC on November 18, 2025, succeeding former Mayor Maria Marino in the board's annual leadership rotation. Previously served as Vice Mayor under Marino in 2024–25. Her District 6 seat is up for re-election in November 2026.
Recent Coverage of Mayor Sara Baxter
Marci Woodward
Role: Vice Mayor, Commissioner — District 4
Republican commissioner representing District 4, which covers the southeastern portion of the county. Elected Vice Mayor by the BCC on November 18, 2025, by unanimous voice vote. Her District 4 seat is up for re-election in November 2026.
Recent Coverage of Marci Woodward
Maria G. Marino
Role: Commissioner — District 1
Republican commissioner representing District 1, the northernmost county district. Served as Palm Beach County Mayor in 2024–25 and previously chaired the Solid Waste Authority. Re-elected to her seat in November 2024; current term runs through 2028.
Recent Coverage of Maria G. Marino
Gregg Weiss
Role: Commissioner — District 2
Democratic commissioner representing District 2 in the central-eastern portion of the county. Served as Palm Beach County Mayor in 2022–23 and as Vice Chair of the Solid Waste Authority. In January 2025, Weiss announced a 2027 campaign for Mayor of West Palm Beach. His current District 2 term ends in 2026.
Recent Coverage of Gregg Weiss
Joel Flores
Role: Commissioner — District 3
Democratic commissioner representing District 3, which includes Greenacres, Palm Springs, Lake Clarke Shores, Lake Worth Beach, Cloud Lake, Glen Ridge, and portions of unincorporated Palm Beach County between Florida's Turnpike and Interstate 95. Elected in November 2024, defeating Republican incumbent Michael Barnett. Term runs through 2028.
Recent Coverage of Joel Flores
Maria Sachs
Role: Commissioner — District 5
Democratic commissioner representing District 5 in south county, including parts of the Delray Beach and Boca Raton areas. Served as Palm Beach County Mayor in 2023–24. Re-elected in November 2024 with 55.5% of the vote. Previously served a decade in the Florida Legislature — six years in the Senate and four in the House. Term runs through 2028.
Recent Coverage of Maria Sachs
Bobby Powell Jr.
Role: Commissioner — District 7
Democratic commissioner representing District 7. Elected in November 2024 with nearly 70% of the vote, succeeding former Commissioner Mack Bernard. Previously served as the Florida state senator for Senate District 24. Term runs through 2028.
Recent Coverage of Bobby Powell Jr.
Joseph Abruzzo
Role: County Administrator (Appointed)
Appointed by the Board of County Commissioners to lead daily operations across Palm Beach County government. Manages more than 7,100 positions and oversees execution of the county's $9 billion budget. The County Administrator is hired by and serves at the pleasure of the BCC; the role is not elected and is not subject to term limits.
Recent Coverage of Joseph Abruzzo
How We Cover Palm Beach County Government
County government touches nearly every Boca Post beat — courts, the Sheriff's Office, transportation, the environment, growth and development across 38 municipalities. We treat it accordingly.
For commission decisions, we work from the published BCC agenda, the supporting backup documents, video of the meeting itself, and the adopted ordinance or resolution as filed with the Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller. For the county's finances, we rely on the annual budget document, the County Auditor's reports, and quarterly budget amendments. For zoning and land use, we track the BCC sitting as the Zoning Board on fourth Thursdays and the supporting Planning, Zoning and Building Department files.
The constitutional officers elected countywide — the Sheriff, the Clerk of the Circuit Court & Comptroller, the Property Appraiser, the Supervisor of Elections, and the Tax Collector — operate independently of the BCC but are part of county government. We cover them as separate entities, with the same sourcing standards.
Where information comes from a public record, we identify the record and the date it was filed or adopted. Boca Post corrects errors promptly. Boca Post corrects errors promptly — see our policies page for more information.
Palm Beach County Government coverage is reported by the Boca Post News Desk. About our newsroom →