Vote Alachua Update
August 2019
From the Supervisor

I hope everyone stays safe as Hurricane Dorian makes her way to our state. My thoughts are with our elections team, all residents of Alachua County and the state as a whole.

Our office is excited to announce that we won the Election Center's 2019 Stars and Stripes Award for our 2018 election cycle partnership with the University of Florida, which made sure students, faculty and staff were aware of early voting on the university's campus.

My most recent column for The Gainesville Sun will be published on Sunday. For now, it can be read here . Look for it so you can read about how potential postal changes could have a negative impact on overseas voters, and how Alachua county voters can avoid these obstacles.

Thank you, as always, for your commitment to elections in Alachua County.

Yours In Service,
Kim A. Barton
Supervisor of Elections
Alachua County
Share with us why you enjoy working with the elections office. Send a picture and short statement (less than 50 words) to TJ Pyche at tjpyche@alachuacounty.us and we will feature you on our Facebook and Instagram pages.
August/September Outreach Events

Alachua County College Day Fair
Springhill Missionary Baptist Church, Gainesville
August 29 at 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Networking with Nonprofits and More
J. Wayne Reitz Union
September 17 | 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Naturalization Ceremony
Federal Courthouse, Gainesville
September 19th | 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.

National Voter Registration Day
University of Florida Campus
September 24 | 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

National Voter Registration Day
Downtown/Headquarters Branch Library, Millhopper Branch Library and Tower Road Branch Library
September 24 | 3:30 pm to 6:30 p.m.

Fall 2019 Volunteer Fair
Santa Fe College Campus Breezeway
September 25 | 11 a.m. to 2 p.m
Read Supervisor Barton's Gainesville Sun column from last month on changes to Florida election laws. If you do not subscribe to The Gainesville Sun but would like the text of the column, email tjpyche@alachuacounty.us .
Vote Alachua Team Spotlight
Makenzie Leonard

Makenzie Leonard is a current University of Florida political science student who has joined our office as an intern for the Fall 2019 semester. She will be working with until December.

In her role as an intern, Makenzie helps create content for social media, plan outreach events, and write for our office. She enjoys working with everyone in the office and is excited for the opportunity to serve the voters of Alachua County.

When not working, Makenzie enjoys hammocking, cooking and competing with the UF Model United Nations Team.
Our office is excited to announce that we won the Election Center’s 2019 Stars and Stripes Award for our 2018 election cycle partnership with the University of Florida.

Pictured (from left): UF Assistant Vice President of Community Relations Susan Crowley, Director of Outreach TJ Pyche, Supervisor of Elections Kim A. Barton and University of Florida President Kent Fuchs.

We are looking forward to building on our success in 2020. Go Gators, go vote! 
Supervisor Barton was on hand when Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that our state would join ERIC (Electronic Registration Information Center), a consortium of states that share encrypted voter registration data.

ERIC allows elections offices to more easily track voter registration across state lines, maintain accurate voter rolls and conduct outreach to eligible unregistered voters.

Image courtesy of the Orlando Sentinel
Supervisor Barton attended University of Florida Housing & Residence Education's Living Learning Communities Kick-off Luncheon on August 16. She is pictured with UF resident assistant Daisha Peek.
A group of Florida election supervisors met in Orlando on August 7 at a training focused on planning continuity of operations in event of a disaster or emergency, which is part of the state's Florida Certified Election Professional (FCEP) Certification training.

Pictured (from left): Hardee County Supervisor of Elections Diane Smith, Supervisor Barton, Glades County Supervisor of Elections Aletris Farnam, Lee County Supervisor of Elections Tommy Doyle, Seminole County Supervisor of Elections Chris Anderson, Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections Craig Latimer and Gilchrist County Supervisor of Elections Connie Sanchez.
Henry Fair, who interned in our office this summer, wrote about why your vote is your voice.

You can read his letter in The Independent Florida Alligator here .
Changes to the deadline to request a vote-by-mail ballot were made during the 2019 Florida legislative session. The deadline to request a vote-by-mail ballot is now 10 days before an election.

For the 2020 presidential primary, the deadline to request a vote-by-mail ballot is March 7 at 5 p.m.
Vote Alachua .com