INDIAN RIVER COUNTY – Assistant Supervisor of Elections Leslie Swan has taken over for retired Supervisor of Elections Kay Clem, who stepped down Dec. 31.
Swan, who remains the assistant supervisor, will lead the Indian River County Supervisor of Elections Office until Gov. Rick Scott names an appointment. Scott is scheduled to be sworn in today. Attempts to reach his transition team to determine when Scott might make an appointment were unsuccessful.
The candidate pool has grown to 13 Indian River County residents vying for the nearly $100,000-year job. The person appointed is expected to serve out the remaining two years of Clem’s term, which ends in 2012.
The three latest candidates to apply for the post include former School Board candidate Althea McKenzie, Ernestine Williams, who ran unsuccessfully for the position in 1996, and Harry Howle III, an insurance agent.
They join Swan, who Clem has recommended to succeed her, Cathy Hart, Sandi Harpring, Charles Searcy, Fran Adams, Brian Heady, Thomas Lureau, Steven Deardeuff, Richard Kennedy, and Dominique Scott.
How Gov. Scott will go about making a selection remains to be seen.
Sterling Ivey, press secretary to Crist, said the then-governor’s process was to have the Appointments Office accept and screen applications for appointments. The staff then would brief the Director of Appointments who would then make a recommendation to the governor and the governor’s chief of staff.
From there, the governor with or without the chief of staff would make the selection.
“Of course, with the incoming administration, the process may change to suit their specific needs,” Ivey said prior to the end of the year.
Whether or not Gov. Scott will consider new applications is not known.
A call to the Governor’s Appointments Office confirmed that applications were still being accepted, though whether they would be considered was not determined.
Applicants are encouraged to print the questionnaire, fill it out and mail back to:
Governor’s Appointments Office The Capitol Building, 7th Floor, Suite 705 Tallahassee FL 32399-0001
Those with questions about the requirements or the application can call (850) 488-2183.
