The race for sheriff of Alachua County ended Tuesday in a mandatory recount. The final count left Democratic candidate Chad Scott slightly in the lead with 47% of the vote, and Republican incumbent Emery Gainey with 46.7%. No Party Affiliation candidate Pamela Marshall-Koons received 6% of the votes.
Florida law requires a mandatory recount for any election in which candidates are within 0.5% of each other. The difference between votes for Gainey and Scott was less than three-tenths of 1%, or 395 votes.
A small crowd of Gainey’s supporters, friends and family gathered at an unleased Butler Plaza property Tuesday night. Light laughter occasionally broke out as the groups gathered and spoke with each other.
One attendee was Stephanie Oubre, 39, Gainey’s stepdaughter.
“We’re hoping for good results,” Oubre said as the clock ticked down toward polls closing.
J.P. Hood, 47, was also present. Hood has worked with Alachua County Sheriff’s Office (ACSO) since 2003, when he was first hired on as a deputy. Hood now works as an inspector with the Office of Professional Standards.
“We saw a big increase in the amount of people who were hired,” Hood said, referring to Gainey’s time in office.
Hood said he felt better than he’d ever felt before for the election in spite of Gainey being a Republican candidate in a predominantly Democratic county.
Gainey himself meandered throughout the room, shaking hands and speaking to his supporters.
At 7 p.m., the crowd grew substantially. Many of the newcomers said they knew of Gainey through his campaign.
“Sheriff Gainey will still be Sheriff Gainey at the end of the night,” said Jeff Fiedler, 75. “He won’t have to change his business cards.”
As the results from the precincts came in, however, Scott and Gainey remained neck and neck, with Scott slightly in the lead. By 9 p.m., the votes were even closer.
According to a WUFT reporter on the scene at Heartwood Soundstage, Scott appeared stressed as the first precinct results began coming in.
Scott, 58, has worked in law enforcement since 1990. He worked with ACSO until 2007 when he was fired by former Sheriff Sadie Darnell over allegations of dishonesty.
Scott unsuccessfully sued for his job back. On Oct. 26, 2024, Scott published a Facebook post on his campaign’s profile acknowledging his termination in 2007 by then Sheriff Sadie Darnell. Scott said he was terminated for being overpaid $327 over a year.
In 2008, Scott joined the Alachua Police Department (APD) and eventually became chief of police. He left APD in 2022 and was rehired as a major at ACSO. Scott resigned from ACSO in June 2023 to run against the incumbent Sheriff Emery Gainey, as required by Florida’s Resign-to-Run Law. Scott rejoined APD as a captain in June 2024.
In a previous interview with a WUFT reporter, Scott said his leadership style and empathy made him a good choice for Alachua County sheriff.
“This is not just a job for me,” Scott said in the same interview. “This is a calling. I love working and serving my community.”
Scott’s platform, according to his website, is built on crime prevention, drug enforcement and community engagement.
The incumbent Sheriff Gainey, 65, is the first Republican to serve as Alachua County sheriff since 2006. He started his career in Alachua County as a patrol officer in 1982 and retired in 2007 as a chief deputy.
In 2016, then-Gov. Rick Scott appointed Gainey as sheriff in Marion County. He worked in this position for about nine months.
Gainey was appointed as Alachua County sheriff in September 2023 by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
As sheriff, Gainey said he’s focused his attention and efforts on growing and retaining ACSO staff.
“We have hired… a little over 190 people,” said Gainey in a previous interview with a WUFT reporter. Gainey estimated that of those 190 hires, ACSO has retained approximately 110 of them.
Gainey said in the same interview he considered the creation of a gun violence task force to be one of his big accomplishments in his first term as sheriff. Gainey said gun violence has been reduced as a result of its formation.
In the case of his election, Gainey’s policies for a new term would include continuing to focus on recruiting new hires for ACSO, combating gun violence and engaging with the Alachua County community at large.
“The process for elections will take its course,” Gainey said of the results. “The democratic process will successfully have been executed.”
Gainey ended his watch party by thanking his supporters for coming and reflecting on his accomplishments as sheriff.