New Union County superintendent elected for the first time in 20 years

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (WCJB) - After more than 6,000 voters weighed in, Union County has a new superintendent of schools. Republican Mike Ripplinger will be succeeding long-time superintendent Carlton Faulk who is retiring after 20 years.

Ripplinger brought in over 2,000 more votes than his competitor David Harris.

“I’m feeling awesome right now. Like a big weight has been off my shoulders. I am just on Cloud 9,” said Ripplinger after getting the results.

Ripplinger said he’s ready for the next chapter and already knows the first steps he wants to take when he takes office on November 17th.

“I want to begin to set a vision ... and talk to the different participants that will help execute that … the school board, working with them, probably going to schedule some workshops to look at some longer rage planning ... and just begin building the next four years.”

Ripplinger said he’s most excited to grow and learn in this new position as well as strengthen the trust that he has built with the community through his campaign.

"There’s a lot that in the next 18 to 24 months I have to go through ... a lot of training ... looking at the various needs of the schools ... even more than what I am custom to understanding.”

For all election coverage and results, click HERE.