Manatee Supervisor of Elections announces retirement. He has a replacement in mind
After over a decade as supervisor of elections, Michael Bennett announced he would resign from the office in March.
“All good things must come to an end,” Bennett said in an official resignation letter sent to Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday. Bennett, 79, is set to step down on March 1, almost three weeks before Florida’s March 19 presidential primary election.
“These years have been some of the highlights of my life, but it is now time for me to spend more time with family, friends and in other community volunteer services,” Bennett, a Republican, wrote in his resignation letter.
Bennett’s resume includes a long list of public service in Manatee County. Before serving as the supervisor of elections, Bennett held public office in the Florida House of Representatives and from 2000 to 2002 and Florida Senate from 2002 to 2012.
The former legislator has also served as a board member for several local organizations, including the Mote Marine Advisory Council, the Gulf Coast Builders Exchange and the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee Community Leadership Council.
In 2012, voters elected Bennett as the supervisor of elections, a local position that oversees local elections and voter registration. He has held the office ever since.
During his tenure, Bennett has been a proponent of registering early and voting by mail, which he described in previous interviews with the Bradenton Herald as the “safest way” to vote.
Bennett has also been a critic of recent election law changes. He said a 2021 Florida law that required more identifying information before voters could request a vote-by-mail ballot and made it so that voters must request a mail ballot every two years would “suppress the vote.”
According to Bennett’s candidate biography, he was born in Brainerd, Minnesota, before moving to the area when he was 10 years old. Bennett graduated from Sarasota High School before serving four tours in Vietnam with the U.S. Navy.
Manatee County election chief to retire
Also in Bennett’s resignation letter, he thanked his staff and gave DeSantis a recommendation for who should fill his seat until the 2024 general election.
“I would ask that you strongly consider appointing my chief of staff, Scott Farrington, to finish out my term,” Bennett wrote, referring to his four-year term set to expire in November. “I cannot believe there is a better, more accomplished or more knowledgeable person than Scott to fill this position.”
Farrington, a longtime employee of Bennett’s, has more than 20 years of election experience. Bennett described him as “the right candidate for the position to ensure that the upcoming elections proceed with as few conflicts as possible.”
DeSantis will appoint a new supervisor of elections at a later date. Reached for comment Wednesday morning, the governor’s office said an appointment announcement won’t be made until the office has been vacated.
After DeSantis appoints a new supervisor of elections, Manatee County voters will elect a candidate to a four-year term in November.
This story was originally published January 24, 2024 at 1:04 PM.
