INDIAN RIVER COUNTY – On Thursday, Nov. 30, the U.S. Election Assistance Commission announced Indian River County Supervisor of Elections Office as a winner of its national competition for best practices in election administration.
Born of the Commission’s mandate to serve as a national clearinghouse of information on election administration, the annual “Clearie” awards recognize outstanding innovations in election administration that can serve as examples for other officials and jurisdictions to emulate.
This year’s award categories celebrate excellence in election innovations, voting accessibility and recruiting, training and retaining election workers.
Indian River County was recognized for its Outstanding Innovations in Election Administration through its voter outreach program “Post the Vote.”
Entries were independently judged based on each initiative’s efficacy, innovation, sustainability, outreach efforts, cost-effectiveness and replicability.
“Post the Vote” was initiated in 2016 by Communications and Outreach Coordinator, Stephanie Nelson, to promote county-wide awareness and participation in upcoming elections, utilizing store front concrete posts, also called bollards. Sixty post covers were displayed in advance of the General Election at each of Indian River County’s public schools, four McDonald’s restaurants, two public libraries, four county offices, two recreation centers, a food bank, two local businesses and Indian River State College.
“Administering elections in the 21st century takes intense dedication, innovative thinking, adaptability and resourcefulness,” said EAC Chairman Matthew Masterson. “Election officials around the country embrace these principles and go above and beyond their charge to administer accurate, accessible and secure elections and ensure the voting process works for every citizen. The Clearie honorees selected this year brought fresh, inspiring approaches to their work and we are excited to celebrate their accomplishments.”
“We are honored to be recognized by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission as an innovator in election administration, and we are grateful for the support we received from community partners who helped make it possible to spread our message about the three ways to vote in Florida elections. Without their assistance, we could not have achieved our goal of increasing voter awareness,” said Leslie Swan Supervisor of Elections.
