PENSACOLA - As the first light of day pierces the windows of the old Escambia County Courthouse, a cramped fourth-floor office is bustling.
Elections Supervisor Bonnie Jones, 51, wears her trusty New Balance sneakers, ready for another day on her feet. The "retirement clock" on her desk ticks away.
64 days, 15 hours, 39 minutes, 38 seconds.
After more than three decades as an elections worker, she should be going home early each evening to her husband and two dogs, or maybe planning a trip to Hawaii to visit her son and 3-year-old granddaughter.
Instead, she hasn't had a day off in weeks. She puts in 12 to 14 hours at a time, often arriving before sunrise and leaving after sunset. Her employees do the same.
The office has stayed in high gear since Hurricane Ivan ripped through the county six weeks ago. The storm destroyed the building that held the absentee and qualifying departments, as well as the area used to tabulate votes on Election Night. It demolished 10 polling places.
And it displaced hundreds, if not thousands, of registered voters, scattering some to other states while they rebuild their homes and lives.
In an election brimming with uncertainties, here's another question to ponder:
Just how many voters will turn out in Florida's hurricane-ravaged counties, most of which supported President Bush in 2000?
* * *
Randy Wheeler is one of the mystery voters.
He and his wife, Michelle, had to flee Pensacola after Ivan destroyed the house they were renting off Gulf Beach Highway. They resettled temporarily in an apartment 40 miles away in Foley, Ala.
Wheeler, a 47-year-old repairman, plans to make the hourlong drive to Pensacola on Tuesday to vote.
"I have to vote, no matter how far out of the way it is," Wheeler said. "It might cost me a half a day's work. It's just one of those things I've got to do."
People across Florida, from Pensacola to Punta Gorda to Palm Beach, have suffered a similar fate. But will those voters be as motivated as Wheeler to cast a ballot amid personal hardship?
Most observers are counting on it.
"We're really not expecting lower turnout," said Jenny Nash, spokeswoman for Florida's Department of State.
She said the silver lining of the hurricanes is that every county had at least six weeks to recover and prepare for Tuesday's election. When Hurricane Charley hit in August, it left Charlotte County with two weeks to scramble before the Aug. 31 primary.
Secretary of State Glenda Hood has visited elections supervisors in the hardest-hit counties and left content.
"They are very well-prepared," Nash said. "They've really been reaching out to voters."
Despite other elections headaches brewing across the state - potential lawsuits, claims of voter intimidation, gripes about electronic voting machines - officials in hurricane-battered areas have pressed to keep turnout high.
They've used television, radio and direct mail to inform voters about every option. They've posted signs at damaged polling places, pointing voters to new sites.
In addition, Gov. Jeb Bush signed an order that allows absentee ballots mailed in hurricane areas to be forwarded to another address. Previously, the law didn't allow that.
Both presidential campaigns have pressed hard for their supporters to vote early, and it seems to be working. Across Florida, counties have reported record numbers of early voters and requests for absentee ballots.
Some officials see such numbers as a sign that turnout, even in storm-beaten counties, will be strong. Others aren't so sure.
"There are many people who are devastated and they've lost their homes," Kay Clem, the elections supervisor in Indian River County, told the Associated Press. "I think it's going to affect turnout."
Jones disagrees.
Before Hurricane Ivan hit Escambia County, she predicted a 75 percent turnout in her county of about 178,000 registered voters, "and I'm going to stick to that," she said.
Truth is, no one knows for sure.
* * *
If the hurricanes do manage to dent turnout, it's tough tell which candidate would suffer most.
Conventional wisdom points to Bush, who in 2000 won most of the counties now reeling from hurricanes. In Santa Rosa County, for example, he clobbered Gore nearly 3 to 1.
But it might not be that simple. Some experts say the president could get a boost for his quick response to the hurricanes.
Others say that the hurricanes were most devastating to poor residents, who tend to be Democrats, which also could hurt Sen. John Kerry.
"On average, Republicans tend to be more likely or better able to handle the difficulties associated with voting, which suggests that they may be better-equipped to cope with the aftermath," said Bob Jackson, a professor at Florida State University.
He said Republicans tend to be more highly educated and have more resources at their fingertips. Even so, Jackson doesn't predict a significant change in turnout.
The campaigns aren't taking chances.
The hurricanes hindered phone banks, advertisements and neighborhood canvassing, but now "our field operation is back up and running," said Matthew Miller, Florida spokesman for the Kerry campaign. "We're not doing anything differently. Our goal is always to have more voters vote. We've worked hard."
For their part, the Republicans have been showering attention on hurricane-hit counties.
Karl Rove, Bush's chief political adviser, said recently that the campaign is targeting individual households in those counties "to make sure we get every one of our voters to vote."
He pledged that the campaign would be "covering the state like the morning dew."
* * *
As the morning wears on inside the old Escambia County Courthouse, the line inside the cramped fourth-floor office stretches down the hallway. Each time the elevator door opens, five or six new faces spill out and join the line.
They are here to vote early.
It's been so busy - more than 10,000 early votes through Sunday - that Jones had to post a police officer at the door to monitor the crowds and keep the lines moving.
Space is tight. Voting booths stand in every corner and crevice, even next to election workers' desks.
Jones shuffles through the office in her sneakers, directing traffic. This has become her main job. But she knows it must be done, because the clock is ticking down to election day.
Another clock is ticking, too - the one in her office.
64 days, 15 hours, 37 minutes, 9 seconds.
8 ... 7 ... 6 ...
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report. Brady Dennis can be reached at 813 226-3386 or dennis@sptimes.com
