By DAVID KARP and TAMARA LUSH
Published October 27, 2004
[Times photo: Bill Serne]
Waiting on democracy: Charlotte Kendall stands at the front of the line along with other folks waiting to vote early at the Supervisor of Elections office in the 501 Building in St. Petersburg on First Avenue N and Fifth Street on Tuesday. At times, the wait was an hour long. On Monday, officials said 854 people voted. Early voting continues through Monday.
Four years after the contested 2000 election, the world still doesn't think Florida knows how to vote.
No hanging chad this time. Those punch card machines are history. But many other things could go awry.
Here are 10 potential problems and what voters can do about them.
1. Provisional ballots
If election workers cannot find a voter's name on the rolls, the voter can cast a provisional ballot. It will be counted if officials determine the voter is properly registered.
PITFALLS: The ballot must be cast in the voter's designated precinct, otherwise it won't count. About 40 percent of the provisional ballots cast in the Aug. 31 primary were rejected. Voters cannot use a provisional ballot just because they don't trust touch screen machines.
SOLUTION: Voters should make sure they are in the right precinct.
2. Voter challenges
Florida law allows any voter or poll watcher to challenge the eligibility of voters inside a polling place or a canvassing board meeting.
PITFALLS: Thousands of voters could be challenged at the polls, which would slow voting. Both political parties will have poll watchers to look for problems. Disputes will get settled by an election worker or, in rare cases, a majority vote of election workers on site.
SOLUTIONS: Any challenged voter can complete a provisional ballot, which will be reviewed by the county canvassing board.
3. Machines
Touch screen voting machines work like bank ATMs, and computers tally the results. Optical scan ballots, which are filled in like a standardized test, are used in Hernando and Citrus counties.
PITFALLS: Some worry hackers can break into the system and change votes. If someone could steal an access card to a machine, they could cast extra ballots before poll workers got suspicious.
SOLUTIONS: Ohio authorities tried to hack into voting machines used in the Tampa Bay area and failed. They also tried to unleash viruses into the machines by loading them into memory or through activation cards; that failed, too.
4. Absentee ballots
Some people will vote by absentee ballot to create a paper trail.
PITFALLS: Absentee ballots are not problem-free. Supervisors have been late sending out absentee ballots, so some may not be returned in time. Some instructions call for both dark pen and pencil. In some counties, envelopes indicate the need for two stamps, though three stamps sometimes are required. Groups also are collecting absentee ballots by hand, which can invite fraud. And if voters don't fill out ballots correctly, their votes might not count.
SOLUTIONS: Voters who haven't gotten a ballot can call the elections office. Those ballots must be returned to the elections office on or before Election Day. Make sure the envelope has the correct postage. Use a dark pen, not a pencil. Don't give your ballot to someone you don't trust; elections officials do not pick up absentee ballots.
5. New voters
More than 1.5-million new voters registered in Florida since 2000.
PITFALLS: Officials expect thousands of people to show up to vote only to discover they are not registered. Others will go to the wrong polling site. Poll workers could mistakenly turn away voters without photo IDs.
SOLUTIONS: People should double-check that they are registered to vote and verify the location of their polling place with elections officials. A photo ID helps, but it's not required. Voters can sign an affidavit or a first-time voter can cast a provisional ballot without a photo ID.
6. Overseas ballots
More than 32,000 Floridians living overseas, including those in the military, requested absentee ballots.
PITFALLS: Some voters are worried that overseas ballots won't arrive in time. In addition, some overseas voters got two ballots because of a lawsuit on whether Reform Party candidate Ralph Nader should be on the Florida ballot. They were told to vote twice. If the election is close, overseas ballots could decide the outcome. But unlike regular absentee ballots, overseas ballots do not have to arrive until Nov. 12. They must be dated on or before Election Day, but don't have to be postmarked that day.
SOLUTIONS: Overseas voters can fax ballots to their county election offices. If they get two ballots, they should return at least one.
7. Poll workers
More than 30,000 people will staff Florida's polling places. They are paid minimum wage, work long days and follow complicated rules.
PITFALLS: The entire voting system depends on humans to execute it correctly, and no one is perfect. Poll workers have flubbed myriad details, from incorrectly turning registered voters away from the polls to failing to open the polls on time.
SOLUTIONS: Poll workers are trained better than ever. They've had two to three hours of training and have attended sensitivity and anger management classes. Voters who think workers have misled them can consult rules posted at the polls or call the elections office. Both parties also will have lawyers on standby, some right outside the polls.
8. Fraud
In any election, cheating is a possibility.
PITFALLS: Some worry that votes will be illegally cast by felons, voters from other states, and people using names of the dead. Others worry that they could be stopped from voting because their registration was changed without their consent.
SOLUTIONS: The Florida Department of Law Enforcement will interview voters after Election Day. Political parties are also watching.
9. Recounts
State law requires a manual recount when a candidate wins by one-fourth of 1 percent or less.
PITFALLS: In the 15 counties with touch screen machines, counties would be ordered to print a copy of each voter's ballot, as recorded by the computer. Critics say voters will have no way to verify that their ballot was correctly recorded. For optical scan ballots, state rules dictate how each county should discern voter intent.
SOLUTION: Critics say touch screen machines should be equipped with printers that would produce a verifiable paper trail, though that can't be done before Tuesday.
10. Felon voting
Felons cannot vote in Florida, unless they have their civil rights restored.
PITFALLS: In 2000, an untold number of voters were wrongly turned away from the polls because they were mistakenly identified as felons who could not vote. Many felons were not identified and voted illegally.
SOLUTIONS: Voters mistakenly identified as felons can cast provisional ballots, which will be counted if officials confirm they are legal voters. Felons who have had their rights restored also can show poll workers proof that they have had their rights restored.
