Online voting taking place through Aug. 27   

Voting for the Best of Apopka Readers’ Choice Awards kicked off Monday, allowing readers to recognize the achievements of individuals, businesses, and entrepreneurs in the Apopka area.  

Sponsored by The Apopka Chief, the contest recognizes community favorites and achievements in business, service, products and more.   

“We are thrilled to bring back this Apopka tradition and launch it into a new era,” said Apopka Chief publisher J.C. Derrick. “It was great to see locals engaging with the ballot right away to vote for their favorite establishments in the community.”   

The contest received more than 120 votes on the first day of voting.  

Introduced in this year’s voting process is the online platform Second Street by Upland Software, making contest voting all take place online.  

“Now that The Apopka Chief is part of a larger media company, we have the advantage of using digital services already proven by our sister media teams,” Apopka Chief media advisor Gigi Cohen said, referring to the Chief’s acquisition by Mainstreet Daily News in February.  

Using Second Street in Best of Apopka will help how votes will be collected and tallied, a departure from how the contest was managed in the past.   

“The core functionality is similar to what The Apopka Chief used in 2021, but the presentation will look a bit different,” Cohen said. “There are back-end advantages like being able to see vote counts at a glance and filters to weed out any inappropriate voting behaviors like automated bots.”  

This year marks the revitalization of the Best of Apopka Readers’ Choice Awards after the contest was dormant for the last four years due to staffing and technical challenges.    

The Best of Apopka Readers’ Choice Award is an all-around win for everyone who participates, contestants and voters alike. Voters who cast their ballots for their favorites show gratitude and appreciation for their favorite businesses. Businesses that place highly in the contest will have their profiles raised because of their win, which provides them with positive feedback and affirmation.   

Contest ballots and marketing tools for businesses are available online at theapopkachief.com.    

Voting for favorite store, restaurant, individual, or business will continue in The Best of Apopka Readers’ Choice Awards until noon on Aug. 27.  

After voting closes, results will be added up, and The Apopka Chief will contact the top three businesses in each category.  

Placements in each category will be announced and scheduled for publishing in the Oct. 3 issue of The Apopka Chief.