Gov. Ron DeSantis has appointed Jenna Persons-Mulicka as Lee County Supervisor of Elections, his office announced May 20.
The previous supervisor, Tommy Doyle, 73, retired Jan. 14 after announcing his decision in November. He was re-elected to the post in 2024 with 80% of the vote.
Persons-Mulicka is a Republican representative in the Florida House since 2020, winning 2022 and 2024 re-election bids. She is a founding partner and attorney at Strayhorn & Persons-Mulicka.
Her district covers the City of Fort Myers and parts of Lee County, representing a population of nearly 180,000.
A member of a powerhouse Fort Myers family, her husband, David Mulicka, is a Lee County commissioner representing District 3. Her father, Armor Person, is a Lee County School District Board member representing District 5. The Persons have been in Lee County for at least six generations.
Persons-Mulicka serves on the Florida Commission on the Status of Women and is a co-chair of the Lee County Bar Association’s History Committee.
Persons-Mulicka earned her bachelor’s degrees in journalism and government from Evangel University in Springfield, Missouri, and her law degree from The George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
As a supervisor of elections, Doyle made nearly $190,000 per year.
DeSantis will have to call a special election to fill the remainder of Persons-Mulicka’s House term. The seat is up for election in November. If DeSantis does not call a special election, there will be a vacancy until then.
News-Press reporter Mickenzi Hannon contributed to this report.
Stacey Henson is the breaking news and visuals editor for the Naples Daily News and Fort Myers News-Press. You can reach her at shenson@gannett.com
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This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: DeSantis names state rep to fill Lee Supervisor of Elections position
Reporting by Stacey Henson, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News / Fort Myers News-Press
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