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Alachua County Democratic Party Officers

2021-2025

J. Maggio

Chair

Brief Bio:

Dr. J. Maggio was born in Brooklyn, NY and is a life-long Democrat. He has lived in Gainesville since 1997. He earned his JD and PhD in political science from the University of Florida. He works as a professor of political science at St Johns River State College in Palatka, where he also chaired the effort to form a faculty union. As a member of the Florida Bar Association, over the past few years J mostly used his legal background as a voter protection attorney for the FDP. He was very active throughout north Florida during the 2018 election and recount, and he was the FDP’s co-lead attorney for Alachua County voter protection during the 2020 election. He was elected Chair of the Alachua County DEC in December 2020. J has published several scholarly articles on political theory, and he enjoys artsy movies and TV, literary and genre fiction, tons of music, and playing guitar. J also loves baseball, and he enjoys losing in fantasy baseball every year. 

To contact you can email chair@alachuadems.org

Iris Burke

Vice-Chair

Brief Bio:

I am a retired certified mediator, and a retired (emeritus) law teacher. I specialized in teaching professional skills and clinical legal education, supervising law students who were providing legal services to clients from underserved communities. In the
past few years, I have been Vice Chair of the Blue Wave Coalition of Alachua County, on the policy board of Women for Wise Growth, and a board member of Our Revolution.

My most important goals for the DEC are to grow and diversify our membership, to connect closely to community issues year-round, and to help ensure active participation in our committees, clubs and caucuses. Prior to becoming DEC Vice-Chair, I was Chair of the DEC Policy and Bylaws Committee which led a successful
effort to make the DEC more participatory, transparent, and effective.

To contact you can email vicechair@alachuadems.org

Richard Powell

Richard Powell

Secretary

Brief Bio:

I am a retired independent school teacher and administrator. My teaching fields were U. S. History and American Government. I came to Oak Hall School in 1995 with my wife Ann, and worked there for 19 years. For 13 of those years, I was the Upper School Head and Director of College Counseling. Prior to coming to Oak Hall, I worked in five other independent schools. Perhaps the most interesting was a boarding school in Arizona which was on a 40,000 acre working cattle ranch. While there, I once rode a mule 26 miles across the High Sonoran Desert to get to a camping site.
I have been interested in politics since 1954. I passed out matchbooks in front of an office building in my hometown in Oklahoma for the son of a family friend who was running for County Attorney. He was a Republican. I was never wholly committed to the Republican Party and became a Democrat in 1972 a result of the burgeoning Nixon scandals. I have served on five DECs in four states. Aside from the Alachua County DEC, I am active at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, INDIVISIBLE: Gainesville Chapter, and the Interfaith Alliance for Immigrant Justice. My other interests include travel, reading, cooking, and bonsai.

To contact you can email secretary@alachuadems.org

Alachua Blue Democrat

Jocelyn Peskin

Treasurer

Brief Bio:

*In The Works*

To contact you can email treasurer@alachuadems.org

Evelyn Foxx

State Committeewoman

Brief Bio:

2008/2012   Elected Delegate to the Nat’l DNC Convention in Denver,Co and Charlotte, NC

1995 to Current        Elected Precinct Person

2012 Alachua County Democrat of the Year
2010 Santa Fe College Women of Distinction Award
2007 Unsung Hero Award (Alachua County Democratic Party)
2007 Florida State Conference NAACP Award
1992 Alachua County Branch President Award

Community Service and Boards

Lawton Chiles Gala Chair (10yrs)

Vice Chair of the ACDC(11yrs)
Former Chairwoman Gainesville Housing Authority (4yrs)
Past City of Gainesville Parks and Recreation Board (15yrs)
Past Members Martin L King Jr. Commission of Florida (10yrs)
Current Cotton Club Museum and Cultural Center Inc
Current Girls Place Board

Current President of Alachua Co. Branch of the NAACP

To contact you can email committeewoman@alachuadems.org

Samuel McKee III

State Committeeman

Brief Bio:

Sam McKee is a democratic socialist and Florida native who has lived in Alachua County since 2016. He first started volunteering for campaigns during the ’08 primary and general elections in support of Barack Obama. In 2020 he was inspired through the Bernie Sanders campaign to officially join his county’s DEC as a Precinct Leader. In addition to running in his own precinct, he recruited over 35 new Precinct Leader candidates across Alachua County. He believes in a politics that builds power through grassroots organizing and improving the material conditions of those who need it most. He wants to help continue the work of making the Democratic Party more people-powered and guided by justice. He currently serves as one of Alachua County’s two State Committeepeople. Pronouns: he/him.

To contact you can email committeeman@alachuadems.org