/https://specials-images.forbesimg.com/imageserve/5f9b087dfd199cab2aaff97d/0x0.jpg?cropX1=0&cropX2=5040&cropY1=8&cropY2=2843&w=1200&resize=1200,675&ssl=1 "‘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.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis speaks during a press conference relating hurricane season updates at … [+]
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Key Facts
The canvassing board of Duval County (home to Jacksonville) — which handles contested ballots — could face a legal challenge after barring observers from recording its vote-counting efforts or objecting to its decisions, and the board’s leader possibly violated state rules by donating to President Donald Trump, the Florida Times-Union reported Thursday.
Several registered Democrats in Florida and other states received threatening emails last week purporting to be from the violent far-right Proud Boys, instructing them to “Vote for Trump or else,” though federal officials later said the mass emails were part of an election interference effort by Iran, which obtained state voter registration records (these records are publicly available and there is no evidence of a security breach, a spokesperson for the Florida Department of State told Forbes).
A Florida man was arrested Tuesday after logging onto the state’s voter registration database and changing Governor Ron DeSantis’ official address without his permission, which DeSantis did not notice until he tried to vote earlier this week.
Hours before Florida’s voter registration deadline earlier this month, the state’s online system crashed due to high volume, forcing DeSantis to hastily tack on a seven-hour extension after an untold number of voters were blocked from sending in applications (there is no evidence this shutdown was due to malicious activity, the Florida Department of State’s spokesperson told Forbes).
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, butt of election jokes, believes system is ready (Associated Press)
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