Palm Beach County school board member Paulette Burdick won’t get a free seat on the county commission after all.

Sherry A. Lee, a West Palm Beach real estate broker, qualified for the ballot as a Republican this morning in the District 2 commission race. Lee’s papers were stamped in at the county elections office at 11:16 a.m. — 44 minutes before the noon deadline. Lee, 47, is making her first run for office. She said she’s been involved in a study group called “Lower Taxes Now” and has been blogging on county budget issues

Democrat Burdick was the only candidate for the seat after state Rep. Mary Brandenburg, D-West Palm Beach, announced Tuesday that she was dropping out. Burdick arrived at the elections office shortly before noon.

“I look forward to discussing the issues,” Burdick said.

District 2 is now represented by Democrat Jeff Koons, who is leaving because of term limits. Democrats hold a 50.2-to-24.1 percent registration edge over Republicans in the district. Republicans didn’t field a candidate against Koons in 2002 or 2006.

The deadline for state and county candidates to qualify for the 2010 ballot is noon Friday.

So far no one has emerged to challenge school board member Paulette Burdick for the open Palm Beach County Commission seat that Jeff Koons is leaving because of term limits. Burdick’s Democratic primary foe, state Rep. Mary Brandenburg, announced Tuesday she’s withdrawing from the race.

And Democrat Steve Perman is the only candidate to qualify for the open state House District 78 seat that Rep. Kevin Rader is giving up to run for state Senate. Perman lost Democratic primaries for the seat in 2006 and 2008. Republican Alan St. Louis opened a campaign for the heavily Democratic seat last year, but withdrew in May.

It’s not unheard of for an incumbent to get a free pass to reelection, but it’s extremely rare for a candidate to walk into an open seat unopposed. State Rep. Mark Pafford, D-West Palm Beach, won without an opponent in 2008. Longtime observers can’t remember the last time an open county commission seat was won without a challenge.

School board member Paulette Burdick has opened up a massive money-raising lead over state Rep. Mary Brandenburg, D-West Palm Beach, in their 2010 Democratic primary race for the Palm Beach County commission seat of Jeff Koons, who’s leaving because of term limits.

Burdick raised another $15,004 between July 1 and Sept. 30, bringing her total to $44,222 so far. Brandenburg raised $600 in the quarter and has collected $2,350 overall.

Burdick’s haul included a $250 check from Koons.

Koons, who’s maintained a neutral posture in the race, was asked if his contribution constituted an endorsement of Burdick.

“Not per se,” Koons answered. But, he added, “Paulette does have the skill sets to be a good county commissioner.”

A majority of Palm Beach County school board members likes the idea of bringing the $2.7 billion school district under the eye of a proposed county ethics watchdog — but not if county commissioners have the final say on filling the position.

After watching five local elected officials go to prison on federal corruption charges since 2006, county commissioners this summer endorsed the concept of an independent inspector general’s office with subpoena power to monitor public officials and government contracts.

But who would hire and fire and approve the budget of the inspector general remains an open question.

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With Democratic Palm Beach County Commissioner Jess Santamaria remaining enigmatic on his 2010 reelection plans, Republican and longtime Wellington Councilman Carmine Priore says he’d consider running for Santamaria’s western District 6 seat if it’s open next year.

That’s potentially good news for a local GOP that hasn’t been able to recruit a District 6 candidate. The bad news: Priore says he’ll cross party lines and support Santamaria if the incumbent runs again.

Santamaria says he’ll announce in January or February whether he’s running. Meanwhile, attorney Elissa Pearl has opened a Democratic campaign in District 6.

Pearl and Santamaria recently met for the first time.

“Our philosophies are similar and it appears that we care about the same things,” said Pearl after the hourlong sit-down in the commissioner’s office.

Santamaria, 72, called the 37-year-old Pearl “a good person” with “a young person’s idealism. We need people like that.” But Santamaria said a commissioner’s job is tough and complicated.

“My question is, (for) Elissa Pearl or anybody else, do they really have the background, the experience, the education, the training, the psychological framework to handle all of these variables on a day-to-day basis?” Santamaria said. “My first impression is, she’ll have a lot to learn.”

Pearl lives just outside District 6, which irks potential GOP candidate Priore. If Santamaria doesn’t run, Priore said, he’d consider the race because “I wouldn’t want to leave the door open to someone that doesn’t live in our area.”

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Pleased with the grass-roots volunteer organization for her 2010 Democratic campaign for county commission, school board member Paulette Burdick has put paid consultants Eric Johnson and Neil Schiller on hold — at least temporarily. Burdick is running against state Rep. Mary Brandenburg, D-West Palm Beach, in a Dem primary to succeed term-limited Commish Jeff Koons.

Burdick paid $1,000 in June for the consulting expertise of Johnson, who’s also chief of staff to U.S. Rep. Robert Wexler, D-Boca Raton, and who works with Schiller on several local races.

“My idea was she didn’t need them,” said Palm Beach Democratic Club President Elna Laun, an unpaid Burdick backer and adviser. “I think I was one of many” offering that advice, Laun said.

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Both GOP District 27 state Senate candidates — Wellington Councilwoman Lizbeth Benacquisto and former state Rep. Sharon Merchant — are from Palm Beach County, but about 60 percent of the GOP primary voters are in Lee County.

In the scramble for Lee County support, Benacquisto will be in Fort Myers Friday for a fund-raiser whose hosts include state Rep. Trudi Williams, R-Fort Myers, Lee County Commissioner Frank Mann, school board member Elinor Scricca and longtime Property Appraiser Ken Wilkinson.

Just because Palm Beach County’s Democratic Party gave its blessing to a 14.9 percent countywide property tax rate hike doesn’t mean all Democratic candidates are on board.

“A 15 percent increase in the tax rate is unconscionable in the kind of economy we’re in right now,” said state Rep. Mary Brandenburg, D-West Palm Beach, who’s running next year for the District 2 commission seat of term-limited Jeff Koons.

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The long-awaited entry of West Palm Beach City Commissioner Bill Moss into the District 2 Palm Beach County commission race isn’t going to happen. Moss said this afternoon he’ll seek reelection to his city seat and will not run to replace term-limited County Commissioner Jeff Koons in 2010.

Moss was expected to enter a Democratic primary fray with school board member Paulette Burdick and state Rep. Mary Brandenburg, D-West Palm Beach, for Koons’ heavily Democratic seat.

Moss offered best wishes to Brandenburg and Burdick, but said he won’t be endorsing either remaining candidate.

Moss said he heard from constituents who wanted him to stay on the city commission.

Longtime school board member Paulette Burdick tells our Laura Green that she will run for the Palm Beach County commission seat of term-limited Jeff Koons in 2010.

Burdick is a Democrat whose current term on the nonpartisan school board runs through 2012.

Term-limited state Rep. Mary Brandenburg, D-West Palm Beach, has also opened a campaign for Koons’ District 2 commission seat.