Lazaro Aleman
ECB Publishing, Inc.
Jefferson County has a new supervisor of elections. He is Justin Tyler McNeill, a fairly well known and respected member of the community with long experience in local government.
Governor Ron DeSantis announced the appointment of 38-year-old McNeill to the office on Friday, Oct. 8.
McNeill replaces former Supervisor of Elections Marty Bishop, whose last day was midnight Thursday, Sept. 30. Bishop resigned after serving in the office for 20-plus years, attributing his decision to family health issues and the stress of the job.
McNeill will serve the remaining three years of Bishop’s term and will then have to run for election in 2022 if he decides to stay in office.
“I’m extremely honored at the appointment,” McNeill said early Monday morning when the News was able to reach him. “I’ve received a lot of support. It’s humbling. I enjoy serving the community and this is a great opportunity to continue to serve it in another capacity.”
McNeill said he had applied for the position to the Governor’s Office about six weeks ago, after speaking with Bishop. He had, he noted, 12 years of experience helping out with the elections process as the Precinct Clerk at Precinct 6.
“I enjoy the elections process,” McNeill said. “I take it seriously. I think it’s very important.”
Did he have any inkling that he would be selected?
“With my experience and helping with the elections, I thought I had a shot at it,” he said. “But it was still a surprise and humbling.”
McNeill was scheduled to take the oath of office at the courthouse at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 12. He said he expected to be shuttling back and forth between the elections office and the Clerk of Court office for a little while, until he could complete all his obligations at the latter office.
McNeill graduated from Florida State University FSU in 2005 with a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature. He has served as Chief Deputy Clerk Of Court and Human Resources Director in the Jefferson County Clerk of Courts office since 2007, acting as office manager, overseeing benefits management, payroll and the county’s insurance lines, and supervising court functions, among other things.
Prior to coming to the Clerk of Court office, McNeill worked a year as an associate broker with the Florida Home Builders Insurance, Inc., where he assisted agents in matching clients’ needs with the appropriate policies, processed and reviewed applications and performed sundry other duties.
He is currently chairman of the Aucilla Christian Academy Board of Directors, Vice President of the Jefferson County Teachers Credit Union Board of Directors and a member of the Jefferson County Youth Outreach and Jefferson County Republican Party.
He is married to Jenny McNeill, a Registered Nurse at Little Pine Pediatrics in Monticello. The two have three daughters: Morgan, 13; Mae, 12; and Molly, 10.
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