The general election is a year away but but the campaigns are already gearing up. U.S. Rep. Ted Yoho has held a tight grip on the seat since he was elected in 2012

While the biggest waiting game in regional politics — whether U.S. Rep. Ted Yoho will vie for a fifth term and thus break a pledge to serve only eight years — continues, challengers for the job are already lining up.

Railroad contractor Judson Sapp of Green Cove Springs, who was defeated by Yoho in the 2018 Republican primary for the District 3 seat, has filed to run again.

Also making another bid is Tom Wells, a Gainesville Democrat who ran for the post in 2018 and lost in his party’s primary to Yvonne Hayes Hinson. She earned 59.5 percent of the vote in a three-person primary and then lost to Yoho in the general election.

Gainesville medical computer system developer Philip Benjamin Dodds ran for the seat in 2012 without party affiliation. He is making another run at it — this time as a Democrat.

And Republican Joseph Dallas Millado of Fleming Island is on his first campaign for political office.

District 3 covers all of Alachua, Clay, Putnam, Bradford and Union counties, and much of Marion County. Yoho won the district in his first political campaign in 2012 and has easily held on to it since then.

Yoho pledged in 2012, in his first run for political office, that he would serve only four terms in Congress. He is completing his fourth and has yet to say whether he will seek a fifth, though he has filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission and raised $73,161 from Jan. 1 through Sept. 30.

Kat Cammack, Yoho’s campaign manager and deputy chief of staff, did not return messages from The Sun on Wednesday and Thursday.

Sapp believes Yoho will stick to his pledge.

“Congressman Yoho has promised time and again he will serve eight years, and I do believe he will keep his word. He’s always been a good Republican and I believe he will advise me well,” Sapp said. “I believe in President Trump and his agenda, and I am going to support it.”

Wells is definitely not a supporter of Trump. Wells said he knew when Trump was elected in 2016 that he would face impeachment, and he criticized House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a fellow Democrat, for not launching the effort sooner.

Democrats have been unable to field a challenger who could make much headway against Yoho. Hayes Hinson pulled Alachua County, but Yoho won the others. But Wells said a Democratic win is not impossible.

“This is not a bright red seat, but the Democratic party has proclaimed it’s unwinnable so it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy,” Wells said. “I started my 2020 run in June of 2016 because I could see that there would be an impeachment going and a lot better chance of election in 2020.”

Millado has not run for political office but has worked for politicians, including former U.S. Rep. Cliff Stearns, whom Yoho defeated in 2012. Millado has also worked for Rep. Gus Bilirakis of Florida’s 12th District. At Florida State University, he interned at the governor’s office.

Leaving Washington after 12 years to be closer to his mother in Jacksonville when his father died, Millado created a government consulting and business development company.

Millado's interests include veteran’s affairs and energy, both of which he worked on while a congressional staffer. Health care and government spending are also priorities. But more philosophical discussion is tops for Millado.

“When I talk to people, the number one issue that I think we should be talking about is the moral fiber in our nation — looking in the mirror and saying, ‘Who are we, what do we want to be and how do we get there?’” Millado said. “It is bringing a conversation, which we haven’t done in forever.”

Dodds said he ran in 2012 to highlight concerns about money in politics. Now, Dodds said, the country is at a crossroads and he believes he can help find the best path.

Supporters from 2012 have been urging Dodds to run again, he said, so he launched a campaign.

“I am building teams of supporters and doing outreach to all of the counties. I’ve been making trips out to Clay, Putnam and Marion, and will be going out to Bradford and Union soon,” Dodds said. “The top issues I talk about are ethical leadership, health care and the environment.”