DeSantis names Disney World admin to run elections in Democratic Orange County

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

DeSantis names Disney World admin to run elections in Democratic Orange County

BY MIKE SCHNEIDER
Updated 3:48 PM EST, March 4, 2024

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Gov. Ron DeSantis has a new job for the man who has led Walt Disney World’s government since his allies took it over — elections supervisor in Orange County, long one of Florida’s most reliable sources of Democratic votes.

Glen Gilzean was appointed Monday by the Republican governor to oversee the voting in Florida’s fifth largest county, where more than 1.4 million residents live among the largest theme park resorts in the U.S. Just last May, Gilzean was chosen to be administrator of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight Committee after DeSantis’ allies took over the Disney World governing district.

Gilzean previously served as a DeSantis appointee on the Florida Commission on Ethics and was president and CEO of Central Florida Urban League.

The county’s longtime elections supervisor Bill Cowles retired in January, about a year before his term was up. Cowles, a Democrat, was first elected in 1996 to the job, which oversees elections in Orlando and surrounding communities.

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Read more: https://apnews.com/article/disney-desantis-florida-orange-county-elections-9803d369a124b02326a0d26a73492043

[hay rick]

1. Gilzean is a DeSantis hatchet man.

His last job was Administrator of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District. His previous gigs included working with Step Up for Students and the Florida Ethics Commission. Translation: he has been fighting Walt Disney, public schools, and sunshine laws. Fighting voting rights and access in a large Democratic county is a natural fit for his resume.