Dr. Kayser Enneking is accused of using her UF email address to campaign.
Charles Goston, a registered Democrat running as an independent for Florida Senate District 8, filed a complaint against his opponent Enneking, claiming she used UF resources to support her campaign.
“We live in a city where there is so much racism and animosity toward anybody like myself who stands up and speaks out for the truth and really just do my job as an elected official because they don’t want my kind,” Goston said.
Goston said he received word from a member of Enneking’s team claiming she violated state law by using her work email to discuss her campaign and her UF Health profile page to post articles referencing her campaign.
Chapter 106.15 of Florida statutes states “a candidate may not, in the furtherance of his or her candidacy for nomination or election to public office in any election, use the services of any state, county, municipal, or district officer or employee during working hours.” If found in violation of this section, she could be penalized with a fine of up to $1,000 if the conviction is a first-degree misdemeanor.
“Anytime you get a major violation like that, you’re supposed to report it,” Goston said.
Goston also claimed Enneking used references to UF in her campaign ads to appeal to audiences.
He said the university is a state institution, and candidates do not have the luxury of using it as a backdrop.
Enneking, who filmed a TV advertisement at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, used the locale because it’s public property, and it’s where she routinely exercises, said Jake Flaherty, Enneking’s campaign manager. Any reference to UF is removed, he said.
“You don’t have to get permission,” Flaherty said. “There’s no guards.”
Flaherty said the team has not received any notification from the Florida Elections Commission, so the complaint may not be officially filed, yet. Emails provided by Goston neither confirm nor deny Enneking used her UF email address.
Flaherty said Enneking created many connections over the 30 years she’s worked at UF Health, and many people use that email as her primary form of contact. Any emails sent to her work mail are redirected to her personal email, he said.
“We have been very careful to use our campaign email account or Kayser’s personal email account for any pending communication about the campaign,” Flaherty said.
Contact Alyssa Ramos at aramos@alligator.org and follow her on Twitter at @LysKRamos
