State Rep. Jenna Persons-Mulicka (left) is the leading candidate to fill the vacant Supervisor of Elections position, Gov. Ron DeSantis said. At right is her father, School District of Lee County Chair Armor Persons.\/NATHAN MAYBERG<\/p>\n
Gov. Ron DeSantis said Friday in Fort Myers that State Rep. Jenna Persons-Mulicka \u201cis the leader in the clubhouse\u201d to be the next Lee County Supervisor of Elections.<\/p>\n
The office has been vacant since January, when former Lee County supervisor of elections Tommy Doyle retired.<\/p>\n
DeSantis made the comments on Friday at Fort Myers High School after speaking about new legislation he signed at the school\u2019s gymnasium which would place new restrictions on teacher unions, a bill which Persons-Mulicka supported.<\/p>\n
Lee County Board of County Commissioners Chairman Cecil Pendergrass applied to the governor\u2019s office for the position in December. Pendergrass, who is running for re-election this November for his seat on the county commission, said he was still interested in the supervisor of elections post. He cited his experience working on the county elections canvassing board.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf the governor calls on me to accept that position, I would be honored and excited to step into that position and work hard for every person in the county,\u201d Persons-Mulicka said. Persons-Mulicka said \u201celection integrity\u201d was an important priority for her and \u201cto make sure every ballot cast is counted and none of those ballots are offset by somebody who is trying to cheat.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pendergrass said he had more experience having worked on the elections canvassing board as a county commissioner. \u201cShe has no experience with that,\u201d Pendergrass said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am still interested in the position. I am the only one who, if appointed, who has no conflicts of interest,\u201d Pendergrass said. \u201cI think I am the best candidate.\u201d <\/p>\n
Pendergrass is a longtime county commissioner and a retired City of Fort Myers Police Department officer. Pendergrass is running for re-election to maintain his District 2 county commission seat, which covers most of Fort Myers. <\/p>\n
Persons-Mulicka is married to Lee County Commissioner David Mulicka and is the daughter of School District of Lee County School Board Chair Armor Persons. Mr. Persons is up for re-election this November.<\/p>\n
Persons-Mulicka also works for the Fort Myers law firm of Strayhorn & Persons-Mulicka.<\/p>\n
DeSantis cited the work of Persons-Mulicka on an election integrity law and for sponsoring a redistricting bill that was sought by DeSantis that will redraw congressional district lines. Persons-Mulicka also led the passage in the state house of the \u201cHeartbeat Protection Act\u201d in 2023, a controversial abortion bill that restricts most abortions to within six weeks of a pregnancy. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not about sponsoring a bill. It\u2019s about running the day-to-day operations,\u201d Pendergrass said<\/p>\n