Early voting to slim down

Hillsborough and Pinellas plan to cut sites; Pasco doesn't.

By STEVE BOUSQUET, Times Tallahassee Bureau Chief
Published July 15, 2007

TALLAHASSEE -- As counties reduce spending to hit their tax relief targets, one program facing cuts is early voting -- a move that could cause bottlenecks at precincts in a high-turnout presidential election year.

Pinellas, Hillsborough, Broward, Palm Beach and Volusia are among those counties planning to have fewer early voting sites in 2008, beginning with the presidential primary and property tax referendum on Jan. 29, as a cost-saving move.

The shift comes as most large counties are being forced to ditch their touch screen machines in favor of an all-paper optical scan voting system, an additional expense that is adding to the urgency of finding ways election officials can save money.

Several election supervisors say state grants for replacement equipment -- $28-million to be divided among 29 counties -- isn't enough. Some counties may need to spend more to provide enough paper, voting stations and backup equipment.

"We need to shift our thinking," said Pinellas Supervisor of Elections Deborah Clark, who estimates that the state's grant of $2.25-million is slightly more than half of what her agency needs.

Directed to reduce her budget by 8 percent, Clark plans to scratch 10 of the 15 early voting sites she used in 2006. She instead will urge voters to take advantage of a law that allows them to have absentee ballots mailed to their homes.

"We must do all we can to encourage our voters to vote by mail in order to avoid long waiting times at early voting sites," Clark told county commissioners in a memo. "We have tried to cut in areas that will not jeopardize our objectives to provide excellent service to our voters and conduct successful elections."

Hillsborough Election Supervisor Buddy Johnson said he also would likely reduce early voting options, by dropping libraries that attracted few voters in 2006.

Pasco Supervisor Brian Corley said he plans to have seven early voting sites, the same as in 2006.

Early voting in Florida began in earnest in 2002, and proved much more popular than anticipated.

Some voters stood under the hot sun for hours, waiting to vote early in the 2004 presidential election.

The long lines prompted Clark to request more money to add early voting locations.

In 2004, nearly one-third of all votes were cast at early voting sites, or 1.4-million out of 4.9-million ballots. The statewide turnout was 74 percent that year.

In 2006, turnout was much lower, 47 percent, and so was the percentage of early voting, about 20 percent of 3.4-million ballots.

The Legislature in 2005 reduced the number of hours that early voting could be offered, to a maximum of 14 days before an election, no more than eight hours a day, and no more than eight hours on a weekend.

Election supervisors must provide early voting at their offices, but it is optional elsewhere, such as libraries and city halls, and in an era of budget cutting, it's viewed as a luxury counties can no longer afford.

"I think it's prudent to look at cutting early-voting sites," said Secretary of State Kurt Browning, the state's top elections official.

He said voters like early voting as a matter of convenience, and it's a public relations bonanza for election supervisors, but the mandate for cutting spending must be met, and "sometimes you have to make tough decisions."

Steve Bousquet can be reached at bousquet@sptimes.com or (850) 224-7263.

[Last modified July 14, 2007, 23:41:42]