NOTICE OF PROPOSED CHARTER AMENDMENT,

CITY OF GAINESVILLE, FL

An election will be held in the City of Gainesville, Florida on Tuesday, November 3, 2026 to amend Article II, section 2.04 titled Election and terms of the Charter Laws of the City of Gainesville. The full proposed Charter Amendment is as follows:

ARTICLE II. CITY COMMISSION

2.04. Election and terms.

(1) (a) Candidates for election to the commission shall qualify in the manner prescribed by ordinance.

(b) Except as provided in Subsection (1)(c) herein, each commissioner shall be elected for a term of four (4) years.

(c) For the purposes of establishing municipal elections every other year in even-numbered years, and changing regular terms of office from three (3) years to four (4) years, the transitional terms of office filled by elections in the years following this change shall be as provided in this subsection. The election held in 2019 for the mayor and district 4 commission seats shall be for terms of office ending when successors in office are elected and qualified after the election held in 2022. The election held in 2020 for the district 2 and district 3 commission seats shall be for terms of office ending when successors in office are elected and qualified after the election held in 2022. The election held in 2020 for the at-large, designated "at-large A", commission seat shall be for a term of office ending when the successor in office is elected and qualified after the election held in 2024. The election held in 2021 for the district 1 and at-large, designated "at-large B", commission seats shall be for terms of office ending when successors in office are elected and qualified after the election held in 2024. Commencing with the regular election held in 2022, the terms of office for the newly-elected seats shall be four (4) years.

(d) The regular municipal election shall be held on the date as prescribed by ordinance. Commencing with the regular election held in 2022, the regular municipal election shall be held on the date to coincide with the statewide primary election.

(e) A vacancy in office may occur due to death or permanent disability, forfeiture of office as provided in this charter, suspension by the Governor as provided by law, voluntary resignation upon delivery of written notice stating an effective date to the City Clerk, or as otherwise provided by law. Upon the occurrence of a vacancy on the commission, a special election may be held to fill the vacancy for the remainder of the unexpired term as may be prescribed by ordinance.

(2) The district candidate receiving a majority of the votes cast in a particular district shall be elected. The at-large candidate and the candidate for mayor receiving a majority of the votes cast within the city at large for such seat shall be elected. If a candidate does not receive a majority of the votes cast for a particular seat, as applicable, a runoff election shall be held between the two (2) candidates for that seat receiving the highest number of votes cast. In the case of a tie, the candidates shall be selected for the runoff election in the same manner as provided for other offices by general law. The runoff election shall be held on the date to coincide with the statewide general election. The candidate receiving more votes in the runoff election shall be elected.

(3) The terms of office of commissioners shall be staggered so that the terms of office of all commissioners do not expire the same year. For the regular elections held in 2019, 2020, and 2021, commissioners hold office from 12 o'clock noon of the Thursday following the first Tuesday in May of the year in which they are elected until their successors in office are elected and qualified or until recalled as provided by law. If a runoff election is necessary in 2019, 2020, or 2021, commissioners hold office from 12 o'clock noon of the Thursday following the third Tuesday in May of the year in which they are elected. For the regular elections held in 2022 and thereafter, commissioners hold office from 12 o'clock noon of the day of the first city commission meeting in January immediately following the year in which they are elected until their successors in office are elected and qualified or until recalled as provided by law. The city commission shall hold a meeting no later than January 31st of each calendar year following an election for the purpose of swearing-in the elected mayor and commissioners.

(4) Vacancies in office shall be filled in one of the following ways:

(a) If less than 6 months remain in the unexpired term or until the next regular election, the commission by a majority vote of the remaining members shall choose and appoint a successor, who is otherwise eligible under section 2.03 of this act, to serve until a newly elected commissioner is qualified.Early-in-term Vacancies. If a vacancy in the office of mayor or city commissioner occurs on or before a date six (6) weeks before commencement of the qualifying period for the regular election that occurs in the middle of the term of the vacant office, then the remaining members of the city commission shall appoint a person who is otherwise eligible under section 2.03 of this act to serve until a successor is elected and qualified. The vacant office shall be placed on the ballot of the next regular municipal election and, if necessary, runoff election. The candidate elected to fill the vacancy shall take office at the first regular or special meeting of the city commission held after certification of the election results and shall serve the remainder of the unexpired term.

(b) If more than 6 months remain in the unexpired term and a general election is not scheduled within 6 months, the commission shall fill the vacancy by a special election to be called not more than 60 days after the occurrence of the vacancy. A special election called to fill a vacancy shall be held as expeditiously as practicable, considering the existing demands upon elections equipment and personnel.Late-in-term Vacancies. If a vacancy in the office of mayor or city commissioner occurs after a date six (6) weeks before commencement of the qualifying period for the regular municipal election that occurs at the middle of the term of the vacant office, then the remaining members of the city commission shall appoint a person who is otherwise eligible under section 2.03 of this act to serve the remainder of the unexpired term.

CODE: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.