South Florida has one last day to vote early in the Florida presidential primaries
.jpg "Sunday is the last day for early voting in Florida. The presidential primary is March 17.")
Early voting in Florida’s presidential primaries will end Sunday for Democrats and Republicans in South Florida despite calls from voting rights groups for the state to extend early voting due to concerns and changes sparked by the spread of novel coronavirus.
Citing the need to avoid lines and crowds, the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law asked Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday to extend early voting through Monday, and to open election voting centers on Election Day — Tuesday — where voters can cast ballots outside their assigned precincts.
Georgia on Saturday announced it would push back its primary from March 24 to May 19, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Louisiana had already announced it would move its election from April to June.
But DeSantis gave no indication Saturday that he would change the state’s early voting schedule. And local supervisors — who have stressed that voting remains safe amid extra precautions to sanitize the polls — said they’d been given no orders from Florida’s secretary of state to change course.
“We’ve heard nothing about extending early voting,” said Steve Vancore, a spokesman for the Broward County Supervisor of Elections.
While most counties in the state chose to end early voting Saturday evening, Miami-Dade and Broward counties will keep early voting centers open through Sunday ahead of the March 17 primary. Early voting begins at 8 and ends at 4 in Miami-Dade County. In Broward, the hours are from 10 to 6.
Mail ballots can be dropped off in person at early voting centers during operating hours Sunday, and at respective elections headquarters until 7 p.m. on election night. It is too late to submit a mail ballot through the postal service.
Voters with mail ballots can still vote at their assigned precincts Tuesday, but should bring their mail ballots with them to turn in to their election supervisor.
Nearly 1.8 million of the state’s 10 million Republican and Democratic voters had voted by mail or at early voting centers as of Saturday afternoon. More than 64,000 had voted at early voting centers in Miami-Dade and Broward counties.
If turnout matches the 2016 primaries, when 4.1 million Republicans and Democrats voted, about 2 million people could cast ballots on Election Day. But this year, with President Donald Trump a lock to secure the nomination, Republican turnout in Florida is down.
Democrats are choosing between former Vice President Joe Biden and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who are competing for their shares of Florida’s 219 pledged delegates.
Some voters assigned to precincts located at senior centers and assisted living facilities will find Tuesday that their polling place has been relocated or closed to voters who do not live on the premises. Supervisors have moved those polling places due to new state restrictions attempting to limit seniors’ exposure to novel coronavirus since they are among the most vulnerable to the effects of the disease, COVID-19.
Dozens of precincts across the state were moved, according to a list compiled by voting rights organization Common Cause Florida. Miami-Dade moved eight locations Friday, including two in Bay Harbor Islands closed due to COVID-19 exposure. Broward moved a dozen.
In its letter, the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law worried that voters might become confused by location changes, face lines on Election Day, or skip voting in order to avoid lines.The organization also noted reports about poll workers refusing to work on Election Day due to fears of the spread of novel coronavirus.
On Saturday, the Sarasota Herald-Tribune reported that about 10% of Sarasota Election Supervisor Ron Turner’s poll workers had quit, forcing him to consolidate polling places. The Palm Beach Post also reported Saturday that as many as 500 Palm Beach County poll workers have bailed on elections.
In Miami-Dade, the county sent out emails and automated calls stressing that the polls — which are operating under sanitation guidelines provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control — remain safe.
“We want to assure you we’re taking every measure at all polling locations to prevent the spread of COVID-19,” the automated Miami-Dade message stated. “Your participation on Monday and Tuesday has never been more critical.”
Miami-Dade elections spokeswoman Suzy Trutie told the Miami Herald that enough poll workers have notified the elections department that they will not come in Tuesday due to the spread of coronavirus that the county has filled positions with seasonal workers and county employees from other departments.
Trutie said she did not know the number of workers skipping the election, but said the shifting of employees was not out of the norm
“Every election has attrition,” she said. “This one just has a little bit more.”
Asked about whether the state would extend early voting, a spokesman for the Florida Division of Elections said Saturday that no changes were being recommended. He pointed a reporter to a joint statement issued Friday by Florida and several states voting Tuesday that said “based on the best information we have from public health officials, we are confident that voters in our states can safely and securely cast their ballots in this elections, and that otherwise healthy poll workers can and should carry out their patriotic duties on Tuesday.”
This story was originally published March 14, 2020 at 6:55 PM.
