‘Florida Has Done It Again’: Here Are Some Of Florida’s Voting Foibles Ahead Of Next Week’s Election

Topline

Florida has a reputation for chaotic elections, and this year’s race has already produced a handful of voter registration controversies, ballot-counting concerns, and straight-up bizarre election security threats — though some experts say there’s little cause for alarm just yet.

Key Facts

Chief Critic

After Florida’s registration database crashed, federal Judge Mark Walker chose not to extend the state’s deadline any further, but he lamented, “Florida has done it again” and scolded officials for the glitches. “[T]his Court notes that every man who has stepped foot on the Moon launched from the Kennedy Space Center, in Florida,” Walker wrote. “Yet, Florida has failed to figure out how to run an election properly—a task simpler than rocket science.”

Surprising Fact

Despite these pre-election stumbles, some experts believe the state is uniquely positioned for an efficient vote-counting effort on Election Night. Millions of Floridians have returned their mail-in ballots so far, and local officials have already started counting some ballots, meaning the state could start reporting its vote counts fairly early after polls close. Plus, even if the race is too close to call, the state has clarified its recount procedures in the wake of the 2000 election.

What To Watch For

Florida does not count most mail-in ballots that arrive after Election Day, even if they are postmarked prior to the election. The U.S. Postal Service is expected to struggle to deliver ballots on time, possibly rendering some votes uncountable, but this strict policy could make Florida’s voting process speedier and less confusing than other states’.

Tangent

Florida is no stranger to election confusion. The state’s 2000 election was one of the most chaotic in U.S. history, mired by unclear and poorly designed ballots, fraught recount efforts, and a Supreme Court challenge that controversially cleared the way for George W. Bush to win the state — and the presidency — by December. Subsequent Florida elections were less disastrous but still often confusing, including a close 2012 race that took four days to call for Barack Obama, and reports of Russian hacking into voter registration databases in 2016.

Key Background

Florida is expected to be a pivotal state in next week’s election. The winner in Florida has ended up winning a majority of nationwide electoral votes in every presidential race since 1996, and its diverse makeup often leads to extremely close contests. Most recent Florida polls favor Democratic nominee Joe Biden by a single-digit margin, but both Trump and Biden are campaigning in the state this week in a late-stage effort to win its 29 electoral votes.

Further Reading

Will Florida, the Recount State, Be Ready for the Election? (New York Times)

Florida, for once, could be a beacon of clarity on Election Night. Or will it be just another cluster of chaos? (Sun-Sentinel)

Florida, butt of election jokes, believes system is ready (Associated Press)