Editing Gainesville, Florida (section)

==Government==
[[File:Dsg Alachua County Courthouse Family and Civil Justice Center 20050507.jpg|thumb|Alachua County Courthouse Family and Civil Justice Center]]

The [[council–manager government]] is the form of [[local government in the United States|municipal government]] used in Gainesville. The day-to-day operations of the city are run by a professional [[city manager]] who is appointed by the elected [[City commission government|city commission]].<ref name=municode_manager>{{cite web |url=https://library.municode.com/fl/gainesville/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=PTICHLA_ARTIIIAD_3.02CIMA |title=About the City Manager  |date=November 12, 2019 |work=City Manager |publisher=City of Gainesville, Florida |access-date=January 11, 2020 }}</ref> Gainesville's city hall is at 200 E University Avenue.

The legislative power of the city is vested in a city commission of seven members, one of whom is the mayor. The mayor and two other commissioners are elected at-large, while the other four are elected from single-member districts to represent a quarter of the city.<ref name=municode_commission>{{cite web |url=https://library.municode.com/fl/gainesville/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=PTICHLA_ARTIICICO |title=City Commission |date=November 12, 2019 |work=Gainesville, Florida - Code of Ordinances |publisher=Municode |access-date=January 19, 2020 }}</ref> The city commission is responsible for [[legislative]] functions such as establishing [[policy]], passing [[local ordinance]]s, voting [[Appropriation (law)|appropriation]]s, and developing an overall vision, like a corporate [[board of directors]],<ref name=ICMAmain>{{Cite web |url=http://www.icma.org/main/topic.asp?hsid=1&tpid=20 |title=ICMA information brochure |access-date=January 16, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060904224433/http://www.icma.org/main/topic.asp?tpid=20&hsid=1 |archive-date=September 4, 2006 |url-status=dead }}</ref> in addition to appointing several professional staff persons.

{| class="wikitable"
|+Gainesville City Commission
! colspan="2" |District
!Office Holder
!Party
|-
|{{party color cell|Democratic Party (United States)}}
|District 1
|Desmon Duncan-Walker
|[[Florida Democratic Party|Democratic]]
|-
|{{party color cell|Democratic Party (United States)}}
|District 2
|Ed Book
|[[Florida Democratic Party|Democratic]]
|-
|{{party color cell|Democratic Party (United States)}}
|District 3
|Casey Willits
|[[Florida Democratic Party|Democratic]]
|-
|{{party color cell|Democratic Party (United States)}}
|District 4
|Bryan Eastman
|[[Florida Democratic Party|Democratic]]
|-
|{{party color cell|Democratic Party (United States)}}
|At-large A
|Reina Saco
|[[Florida Democratic Party|Democratic]]
|-
|{{party color cell|Democratic Party (United States)}}
|At-large B
|Cynthia Chestnut
|[[Florida Democratic Party|Democratic]]
|}

The [[Mayor of Gainesville]] is the presiding officer of the city commission and has a voice and a vote in its proceedings but no veto power.<ref name=municode_mayor>{{cite web |url=https://library.municode.com/fl/gainesville/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=PTICHLA_ARTIICICO_2.08MA |title=2.08. - Mayor.   |date=November 12, 2019 |work=Gainesville, Florida - Code of Ordinances |publisher=Municode |access-date=January 13, 2020 }}</ref> The current mayor is [[Harvey Ward (politician)|Harvey Ward]], a registered [[Florida Democratic Party|Democrat]] who took office in 2023.

Municipal elections are [[Non-partisan democracy|nonpartisan]] and use a [[two-round system]], i.e., if no candidate receives a majority of the vote, a runoff election ensues between the two candidates who received the most votes.<ref name=municode_elections>{{Cite web|url=https://library.municode.com/fl/gainesville/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=PTICHLA_ARTIICICO_2.04ELTE|title=Municode Library|website=library.municode.com|access-date=January 19, 2020}}</ref> The mayor and other commissioners are elected to a term the length of which is in transition;<ref name=election_changes>{{cite news |title=Kim A. Barton: Expanded early voting part of city election changes |author=Kim A. Barton |url=https://www.gainesville.com/opinion/20190202/kim-a-barton-expanded-early-voting-part-of-city-election-changes |newspaper=[[The Gainesville Sun]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200111230202/https://www.gainesville.com/opinion/20190202/kim-a-barton-expanded-early-voting-part-of-city-election-changes |archive-date=January 11, 2020 |access-date=January 19, 2020 }}</ref> in any case, neither the mayor nor any other commissioner may serve more than two consecutive terms, excepting following a partial term created by a vacancy. Mayoral terms are reckoned separately from terms as another commissioner, allowing a commissioner to serve more consecutive terms by alternating between the positions.<ref name=municode_eligibility>{{cite web |url=https://library.municode.com/fl/gainesville/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=PTICHLA_ARTIICICO_2.03EL |title=Eligibility |date=November 12, 2019 |work=Gainesville, Florida - Code of Ordinances |publisher=Municode |access-date=February 7, 2020 }}</ref>

===Departments===
{{Expand section|reason=See http://www.cityofgainesville.org/Departments# |date=July 2022}}
Law enforcement is provided by [[Gainesville Police Department]], except on the University of Florida campus, which operates the University Police Department. Gainesville Police Department is at 545 NW 8th Avenue.

Fire protection within the city limits is provided by the Gainesville Fire Rescue, while the surrounding county is served by the Alachua County Fire Rescue. Alachua County Fire Rescue provides ambulance services for the whole county.