Laura Young
ECB Publishing, Inc.
Jefferson County Supervisor of Elections Justin “Tyler” McNeill spoke at the luncheon meeting of the Monticello-Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce on June 7.
McNeill was appointed to his position by Gov. Ron DeSantis in October of 2021 when Marty Bishop, Jefferson County's longtime supervisor of elections, resigned mid-term due to health concerns.
“I inherited a great office with a great employee,” said McNeill, “and my main task when I was appointed was to modernize the office.”
Elections Office Updates
McNeill said he has enjoyed updating the county's elections technology and had experience with similar updates in other roles previously.
“The biggest thing for me was finding out that they ran a hand ledger, which I had never seen before. It was like something out of A Christmas Carol, with Bob Cratchit and Ebenezer Scrooge, so I dropped a chart of accounts into QuickBooks, which is probably the best $40 of taxpayer money I've ever spent.”
From there, it was “one bite at a time” in terms of modernizing other aspects of the operation, said McNeill.
“You all hear the same buzz words that I heard before I was appointed and since then: election integrity, election security.”
The updates he has implemented address these concerns in three areas. In terms of the physical facility, McNeill noted that the building is a great facility that had been previously renovated to have more open public space. He has put “finishing touches” on it, such as making the front bathroom ADA compliant so that visitors do not need to go into the back area to use the restroom. He also has fortified security near the ballot room and IT/server room so that entry to those areas now requires two types of authentication. Equipment that was previously stored at two other locations has been moved so that it is all kept on site.
Much of the updating is being accomplished with state grant money, said McNeill, rather than using the local ad valorem money that comes from taxes on property, products and services. In the eight months he's been in office, McNeill has received four grants from state funding sources.
In terms of technology, one of these grants will be used to install software that can actively scan outward for malicious IP addresses rather than just passively waiting to detect a specific hack attempt. He also obtained state funds to upgrade the computer firewall and purchase a next generation server that better manages the software and databases that his office runs that tie into the state's databases.
In terms of equipment, McNeill explained that the Dominion voting machines that Jefferson County uses are reliable, state certified models (not the models that have been publicly criticized as problematic). Our state certified models were used in the 2020 elections without any issues, he said.
One of the biggest changes that voters will notice in 2022 is the use of electronic sign-in.
“Rather than you go in, show your ID and they flip through a book to verify you, now you are going to sign in electronically... This satisfies the Senate's request to have real-time rendering of voter turnout.” Real-time, electronic attendance will prevent a voter from casting a ballot in one precinct and then trying to vote again in another precinct, not only in the county but statewide.
Results of Redistricting
Next McNeill explained results of the regular 10-year redistricting process for the Florida Legislature, which splits Jefferson County between House Districts 7 and 9, with most voters in the county (From Hwy. 27 north) being moved into District 9 with the 2022 elections.
“We are going to be sending out new voter ID cards in the next couple of weeks,” said McNeill. “That will tell you which seat you are in.”
Nonpartisan Races
McNeill moved on to talk about upcoming races. He pointed out that because School Board seats are non-partisan races, they will be decided in the Primary Election on Aug. 23.
“If you have two [School Board] candidates, it's a winner take all in the primary. Those do not go to November,” explained McNeill. “Even with races that have more than two candidates, if someone gets 50 percent of the people that vote plus one vote, they win. There will be no run-off. If they get less than 50 percent plus one vote, there will be a run-off between the top two vote-getting candidates in November.”
Elections Website
McNeill announced that the Supervisor of Elections website has been updated and is also now mobile friendly. At www.jeffersonvotes.com, Jefferson county residents can register to vote, check their registration status, learn their precinct information, see names of qualified candidates, request a vote-by-mail ballot and more.
Trends in Voting Method
McNeill then discussed Senate Bill 90, which changed the requirements for absentee voting. “It's very convenient. It's very safe. We're doing advanced FBI training with our signature verification, and there are other things in place to verify who that ballot came from and who is the one who actually signed for it. Vote by mail is here to stay.”
McNeill noted that one third of county voters used the vote-by-mail method in 2020, and another third voted early. That left only one third of eligible voters going to precincts on Election Day. He predicted that if these voting method trends continued, there could be some consolidation of precincts, in consideration of the costs incurred in setting up and staffing precincts where only, say, 25 or 30 people might be left to vote.
“People might have to drive another mile or mile and a half,” McNeill surmised, if precincts were to be consolidated after the current election. “It would probably be unpopular, but it's for the better of the county, especially if we continue to see this trend of early voting and vote by mail.”
In conclusion, McNeill read out the list of candidates for each race in 2022 and expressed the hope – apparently a fervent prayer lifted up often by Supervisors of Elections everywhere – that whoever wins, wins big.
In answer to a wrap-up question, McNeill shared that he is not running for re-election because, while in the past he has helped out at precincts during election season, the Supervisor of Elections role requires a single focus 365 days a year.
“It's a neat job, and I think it's going to be a great job for somebody who really wants to do elections all day, every day.” Looking forward, he is excited about pursuing other local opportunities.
For more information about upcoming elections, visit www.jeffersonvotes.com, call (850) 997-3348 or stop by the office at 1175 W. Washington St.
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