Citing health problems, Duval County's embattled supervisor of elections resigned Monday, two weeks before a presidential election that already has stirred anger among black voters.
Gov. Jeb Bush will appoint an interim supervisor soon, a spokesman said.
Elections Supervisor John Stafford suffered a heart attack in March and was in a coma for 36 hours. He received a pacemaker in April, entered a rehabilitation facility in August and is now home, said spokeswoman Erin Moody.
Stafford hasn't been in the office much this year. His deputy, Dick Carlberg, has been in charge and battling criticism about a lack of early voting sites.
Critics ranging from Republican Bush to black Democrats have complained that the only early voting site is in downtown Jacksonville, too remote for many voters, particularly black voters whose ballots were disproportionately rejected in 2000.
On Monday, Secretary of State Glenda Hood said Duval would add early voting sites.
But the wrangling has created bad feelings, said Isaiah Rumlin, president of the Jacksonville branch of the NAACP.
Carlberg "doesn't really want to cooperate with leaders in the community," said Rumlin. Many in the community called for Stafford's resignation months ago, he said.
"To have the governor appoint someone who perhaps is not aware of the problems in that office could present bigger problems," Rumlin said. "We have concerns about that."
In the months after the 2000 presidential election, Stafford came under fire for the way he designed and handled ballots.
An estimated one in five black votes were tossed out in Duval County, three times the rate of white votes.
No county produced more spoiled votes that year - a total of 27,000 in Duval were tossed. On the ballot, voters were told to choose one person on every page. The presidential ballot, however, took two pages. If a voter followed instructions and voted twice, the votes for president were not counted.
Bush said he will appoint an interim before the Nov. 2 election. "I was saddened to receive his letter of resignation today; however, I respect his decision to make his recovery and health his first priority," Bush said in a statement.
-- Tamara Lush can be reached at 813 624-6142 or at lush@sptimes.com
Howard Troxler: