Mary Jane Arrington
Supervisor of Elections

The Supervisor of Elections will be mailing new Voter Information Cards in a few weeks.  

These cards will let voters know of any changes to their voting districts based on redistricting that has just been completed in Osceola County. Voters may also see a change in their polling location for the upcoming elections.

Every 10 years, following the U.S. Census, our Constitution requires that lawmakers at the Federal, State and County levels address the makeup of voting districts nationwide. This process is known as redistricting.  

Since the district lines were redrawn, several changes were made in our county.  This included the County Commission and School Board drafting new district lines due to population shifts.

The state and federal governments also made changes based on these population changes.

As the Supervisor of Elections, it is my responsibility to place voters into their new districts as provided by these lawmakers.  

Redrawing precincts requires that we consider many things including, changes in voting patterns and ballot styles created by the new district lines.  Finding locations within these precincts requires that we look at several areas as well.  

We search to find the best, centralized option for the voters in each area of the county.  

The redistricting process has provided us with the opportunity to reduce our polling locations by 15 throughout the county.  

In recent years, voters have changed the way they vote with at least 50 percent voting before Election Day by choosing to vote early or by mail.  

Many of the locations were consolidated with polling locations that were very close in proximity. Other polling locations were relocated or moved because they were problematic to voters and our Election Day poll workers.  

When choosing locations, many factors were considered.  We considered whether the site was large enough to accommodate the voters in the area, the equipment needed, parking, accessibility for all voters and centralization to the voters in the area.  

We have worked very hard to reduce our presence in the schools.  However, there are some areas that if we did not use the schools we would not have viable polling locations for the voters in those communities.  

We realize that change is necessary and inevitable as our community continues to transform.

My staff and I have researched these locations and the voters who vote in them.  We are confident that these changes will work.  

We will place enough voting equipment at each location so we can process voters in an expeditious manner.

As your Supervisor of Elections, I am responsible for running this office as efficiently as possible.  

I also have the privilege of being the conduit to making the voting process as seamless as can be for the voters of Osceola County. I take this task very seriously.  In addition to making our polling locations more centralized and more accessible to all voters, the cost saving will be tremendous.  

Since being elected by the citizens of Osceola County to serve as their Supervisor of Elections, we have reduced the annual budget from $4.1 million to $2.6 million.  

My staff and I continue to look for ways to save money and reduce our budget.  In 2016, the State will require us to purchase new equipment. With these polling location changes, we will see a savings of $1.2 million in new equipment costs alone.  

In addition to the new Voter Information Cards we will be sending notices to all voters advising them of their polling location.  

Sample ballots will also be a reminder of any changes for the voters.  

Mary Jane Arrington is the Osceola County supervisor of elections.