Frank,these are the rules:...........ABSENTEE BALLOTS
REMEMBER! Once a voter returns an absentee ballot in its Official Absentee Envelope to the Elections Office, the voted
ballot has been placed in the ballot box.
While the U.S. Constitution guarantees each eligible registered voter the right to vote in an election at the precinct where he
resides, the Constitution does not guarantee registered voters the right to vote by absentee ballot. Absentee ballots are a 20th
century phenomenon. Rules governing eligibility for absentee ballots are established individually by each state -- how to, who
may, and when to apply, etc. While votes cast in person at the polls are secret, that may not always be true of absentee ballots
because of unique circumstances (only one person voted in a specific ballot style) or by court order; however, this happens
infrequently.
Who may vote by absentee ballot? Any elector may vote absentee if he is an active voter, registered on or before the book
closing, makes a request for an absentee ballot, and meets the requirements of §101.64, Florida Statutes. Inactive voters must
provide to the Elections Office under oath, a signed, sworn, written statement as to continuous county residence before an
absentee ballot request can be accepted and processed. Florida Statutes §101.64 provides any qualified Collier County
Elector may vote by absentee ballot for one of the following reasons:
1.He/She is unable to get to the polls unassisted during hours the polls are open.
2.He/She will be out of his/her home precinct during hours the polls are open.
3.He/She is a poll worker whose assignment is out of his/her home precinct.
4.The election date/hours conflict with his/her religious beliefs.
5.He/She moved out of the county 28 or less days before the election.
6.He/She moved out of state 28 or less days before the election.
7.He/She voted in person and under the supervision of the Supervisor of Elections.
Absentee electors who find they will not be out of the county or precinct on election day after all, and who have not yet
returned the absentee ballot to the Elections Office, should write "cancel" across the absentee ballot envelope and take that
"canceled" absentee ballot to the polls for surrender to election workers. By doing this, no affidavit will be required of the
absentee elector before voting. Failure to surrender the "canceled" absentee ballot at the polls means the elector must be
referred to the Precinct Clerk and must complete an affidavit. Once the voter has completed the affidavit, the voter will be
allowed to sign the register, be issued a ballot card, and cast his/her ballot. Should the post-election audit reveal an absentee
elector misrepresented his absentee ballot status, the matter will be referred to the State Attorney for investigation and
disposition.
Absentee voters who now find they will not be out of the county or precinct during election day but who have mailed the
absentee ballot back to the Elections Office should not attempt to vote at the polls. An absentee ballot returned to the
Elections Office in the Official Absentee Ballot Voter's Certificate Envelope (the return envelope) is "in the ballot box." It does
not matter if the ballot was voted, not voted, or was spoiled. Florida Statutes §104.17 provides any elector who knowingly
votes or attempts to vote both in person and by absentee ballot in any election is guilty of a third degree felony, punishable as
provided in §775.082, §775.083, or §775.084, F. S. (up to five years in jail and/or a fine).
Any eligible elector moving out of the county less than 29 days before an election may request and vote an absentee ballot per
§101.64, F.S. The absentee ballot shall contain only applicable state and/or judicial or federal candidates. This elector will not
be able to vote by absentee ballot for any succeeding election in this county.
In the years divisible by four (presidential election years), and any eligible elector moving out of state less than 29 days before
an election may request and vote an absentee ballot. That ballot will contain only candidates for President and Vice President, if
any. That elector will not be able to vote by absentee ballot for any succeeding election in this county.
How to request an absentee ballot. Absentee ballots may be requested only by active voters. The request may be by mail, in
person, or by phone. To request an absentee ballot, see document end.
Election notices are required for military, overseas Americans, and dependents. By this notice, voters are reminded of coming
election dates and provided a written absentee request form. The Elections Office included civilian voter households in the
process because: (a) this enabled staff to follow up on address corrections in a more timely manner; (b) it notified all voters of
upcoming elections; (c) it provided each voter household with a form with which to submit a written request for an absentee
ballot; (d) it shifted absentee requests data entry to non-peak work periods and reduced overtime costs; and (3) it provided an
improvement in voter participation rates.
How long is an absentee request valid? An absentee request is valid for one calendar year from the request date. If multiple
elections occur in one year, the elector must designate each election for which an absentee is needed.
At the time of request, what information must be provided? To process an absentee request, the Elections Office needs
your unique voter identification number, your name as registered, the last four digits of your social security number (as a
minimum),the election date(s) for your request, and your absentee mailing address if you are going to be out of the county.
Many voters have the same name -- identical in either spelling or sound (if requested by phone). Be prepared to provide
additional unique identifying information known only to you and the Elections Office - such as your date of registration, date of
birth, place of birth, former county residence or mailing address, and/or social security number. If you are making the absentee
request for a member of your immediate family, you will have to provide the required information on the voter needing the
absentee plus you will have to provide your name, your address, your complete social security number, your relationship to the
voter for whom the absentee is requested, and you are limited on the number of requests you may place on behalf of other
family members.
When do you request an absentee ballot? Absentees should be requested prior to election day. No absentee ballot
requested more than 12 months in advance of the election date will be honored. The earlier your request is made the better
your chances of completing the cycle. Do not wait until election day to make a request. No absentee requests will be mailed on
election day since the completed absentee ballot must be in the supervisor's possession by 7:00 P.M. that day. If an individual
is able to come to the Election's Office to pick up an absentee ballot on election day, that elector is determined to be able to go
to the polls to vote.
What if you are physically disabled and need assistance in voting? Electors who require assistance to vote because of
blindness, disability, or inability to read or write, may have some person of the elector's choice, (other than the elector's
employer, an agent of the employer, or an officer or agent of the elector's union) mark the elector's choices or assist the elector
in marking his or her choices on the ballot. All other absentee voters are required to vote their ballot in secret.
When will your absentee ballot be mailed? Until the slate of candidates is known, the Elections Office cannot complete
absentee ballots for mailing. Absentee ballots requested 60 or more days before the election date will be included in the initial
mailing. The mailing usually begins 30 days before the election except for the 2nd Primary when mailing begins 18-23 days
before the election. After this initial mailing is out, requests will be mailed every two to three days, then daily - depending upon
volume and proximity to election day. Absentee ballot mailings cease the Friday immediately preceding election day per Florida
law. For subsequent elections, early absentee requests will be mailed seven to ten days after the preceding election; thereafter,
the mailings will be daily. (See List for more details.)
The Elections Office sends absentees ballots only by first class mail. The Elections Office does not arrange nor pay for courier
service pickup or delivery of absentee ballots. Absentee voters desiring to have their absentee ballot picked up by a courier
service must notify the Elections Office in writing and must indicate the name of the courier service to whom their absentee
should be released. This notice must be a written original and not a facsimile. The courier service must provide satisfactory
identification before the ballot can be released.
Provided absentee ballots are available, a voter who has called a day in advance may stop by the office to pick up the
prepared absentee ballot. Persons picking up an absentee ballot must sign for it and provide photo identification. The voter may
pick up only his or her own ballot -- no others -- without meeting the requirements for designees.
Absentee ballots to be picked up by a voter's "designee" will not be available, by law, until the 4th day prior to election day.
The "designee" must be a member of the voter's immediate family, must provide photo identification, familial relationship, must
bring the voter's note in which the designee is identified by name and election, and must sign an affidavit. No non-family
member is authorized to pick up an absentee for another individual without following the procedure outlined for
election day pick up. Immediate family means the voter's spouse, son or daughter, mother or father, and
grandmother or grandfather.
Persons admitted to the hospital on election eve or poll workers with last-minute out-of-precinct work assignments are the
only election day absentee ballot recipients.
What is the election day absentee request procedure for last-minute hospital admissions on the day/night before? The
voter must have been admitted to the hospital before 7:00 A.M. The voter's signed, written request must identify by name the
individual family member or guardian designated to pick up the absentee ballot from the Elections Office. The absentee voter
must sign and date the request. Upon receipt of the request, Elections personnel will compare the voter's signature to existing
records; and if the signatures match, prepare the absentee ballot, require photo identification of the voter's designee, have the
designee complete the required affidavit, and require said designee to sign for the absentee's release (per §101.62(4)(b),
Florida Statutes.) Once the elector has voted his absentee, he or she will need to prepare another note indicating by name the
person who will be delivering the elector's absentee ballot to the Elections Office.
What if you make a mistake when voting your absentee ballot? Call the Elections Office first. Do not discard the spoiled
ballot. The spoiled absentee ballot must be surrendered before a replacement may be issued. Elections personnel will send
you an affidavit for replacement. You should seal the spoiled ballot in a plain white No. 10 envelope and return it, along with
the replacement affidavit, to the Elections Office. Upon receipt of the affidavit and the spoiled ballot, the Elections personnel
will issue the replacement ballot. Do not use the Official Absentee Ballot Voter's Certificate return envelope for returning the
spoiled ballot. Whether voted, unvoted, or spoiled, any absentee ballot returned by the elector in the Official Absentee
Ballot envelope has been placed in the ballot box.
Candidates and absentee ballots: Section 101.62(4)(b), Florida Statutes, stipulates that NO candidate may be designated to
pick up an absentee ballot for any elector other than a member of his or her immediate family -- spouse, eligible son or
daughter, mother or father, and grandparents. NO candidate may serve as an attesting witness on any absentee ballot without
jeopardizing the validity of that absentee ballot (§101.65(6)(b), F.S.)
Who may witness your voted absentee ballot and what does the witness do? The witness must watch you sign your
absentee ballot voter's certificate but must not watch you vote your ballot. An absentee ballot may be witnessed by any Florida
voter other than a candidate. A Florida voter may not witness more than five absentee ballots per election. There are no limits
on the number of absentee ballots witnessed by a notary public, an active duty commissioned military officer holding the rank of
Ensign or Lieutenant or greater, a supervisor or deputy supervisor of elections, or an individual who has been certified as an
absentee ballot coordinator by the Florida Division of Elections following a criminal background check. Absentee ballot
coordinators are certified only for a general election or special election to fill a vacant house or senate seat.
For your Absentee Ballot to be counted, when and how must you return it? Absentee Ballots may be returned to the
Elections Office by mail, by personal delivery by the voter or by the voter's "designee" family member, or courier service. If the
absentee is delivered by a "designee," the voter must provide written authorization to the Elections Office in which the voter
identifies the "designee" by name. The designee is required to provide photo identification and complete an affidavit before the
absentee ballot can be accepted.
Absentee ballots must be delivered to the Supervisor of Elections by 7:00 P.M. on election day. Absentee ballots delivered to
the polls will not be counted since they will not be in the Supervisor of Elections Office by 7:00 P.M. on election day.
Absentee ballots turned in at the polls are surrendered for cancellation because the voter appeared to vote in person. This
procedure differs from many other states'.
Absentee Canvass: The canvass of absentee ballots may begin on the 4th day prior to election day. In Collier County, the
County Canvassing Board will canvass the absentee ballots prior to election day by the physical opening and preparing of
ballots for tabulation will not begin until 7:00 A.M. on election day. Any elector or candidate who believes an apparent defect
on the Voter's Certificate is illegal may challenge the absentee ballot at the Canvassing Board meeting before the absentee is
opened. A challenge to an absentee ballot cannot be made to the County Canvassing Board after the absentee has been
opened.
To be valid, the voter must sign the Certificate across the envelope's flap; the signature must be a reasonable match of the
signature on file in the Elections Office, PLUS the voter must provide the last four digits of his or her social security number.
The voter's signature must be witnessed by a Florida voter who is not a candidate and the witness must sign the absentee ballot
only after witnessing the voter's signing. The witness must provide his voter identification number, the Florida county where he is
registered, and the witness' address. Voter's signatures are compared to the voter's signature on record with the Elections
Office. While an exact match is not required, it must match.
If the Canvassing Board determines an absentee is "illegal," it will remain unopened and be marked "Rejected as Illegal.". Any
absentee will be "rejected as illegal" if:
it does not contain the absentee elector's signature plus
the voter's last four digits of his or her social security number, plus
a witness signature plus
the county where the witness is registered, plus
the witness' address;
the absentee elector's signature does not match the signature on file with the Elections Office;
the last four digits of the voter's social security number on the absentee ballot do not match the last four digits of the
voter's social security number as it is on file in the Elections Office;
the elector who signed the absentee has no request for an absentee ballot for the election;
the absentee elector's signature was provided by someone claiming to have the elector's power of attorney;
the absent elector's eligibility to vote has ceased to exist prior to the polls opening at 7:00 A.M. on election day.
the elector fails to sign the absentee;
the witness fails to provide his voter registration (identificaiton) number;
the witness fails to provide the Florida county where registered;
the witness fails to provide an address;
the witness address is incomplete;
there is no witness;
the witness is a candidate;
if the witness was a Notary Public, the notary failed to sign the absentee; failed to print, type, or stamp the name and
commission (seal); or failed to note the type of ID produced by the voter;
if the witness was an activity duty commissioned officer in the military (or appropriate diplomat), the officer was not the
rank of Ensign or Lieutenant or above, or failed to include the branch of active duty military service.
The courts have held the acts associated with voting -- registering to vote, voting, signing the precinct register (if voting in
person), or voting and signing the absentee ballot -- are so unique to the individual that they cannot be delegated to another
person by the voter. |
