Election Day live updates: What’s happening at the polls in South Florida on August 18
We’re keeping track of the latest news regarding Tuesday’s primary elections in South Florida. Check back for updates throughout the day.
Voters who have not cast a ballot by mail or via early voting in Miami-Dade and Broward will decide who will fill some important roles, including Miami-Dade’s mayor, Broward’s supervisor of elections and School Board seats in both counties.
Both counties are also deciding on a state attorney. Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernández Rundle is running against Melba Pearson, a former prosecutor who has worked with Rundle and is now with the American Civil Liberties Union. Broward County State Attorney Mike Satz is retiring after more than four decades in office, leading to eight candidates in that race.
Were voters turned away from a Tamarac precinct?
5 p.m.: Val Glenister, a 29-year-old public affairs consultant from Miramar, volunteered with Ruth’s List Florida Tuesday, bouncing from precinct to precinct around Broward County with a group of friends.
She was handing out information in support of Democrat Jasmen Rogers-Shaw, who is looking to replace incumbent Democrat Anika Omphroy in House District 95, and said things had gone fairly smooth. Glenister has been volunteering since the beginning of early voting, and was pleasantly surprised with the lack of hiccups she witnessed.
However, when she arrived at a polling location in Tamarac around 2 p.m. Tuesday, she noticed something weird. When she and other volunteers congratulated voters for voting as they left the location, some told her they were turned away. Poll workers said they were following orders from a supervisor who asked them to crack down on “voters who may be trying to vote twice.”
Glenister told the Miami Herald in a phone interview that around a dozen voters were turned away in the time she was there.
“People were questioning it and calling the Supervisor of Elections’ office,’ said Glenister, who herself is running a 2021 campaign for a spot on the Miramar city commission. “As a poll worker you have a right to speak up if you know better.”
How COVID affected canvassing
4:45 p.m.: It’s been a strange campaign for people pushing their candidates.
COVID-19 pandemic upended the usual routines for canvassers soliciting support by going door-to-door. For some, doors almost never opened and many chose to talk through a window. Some campaigns used more door hangers than usual. For others, workers encountered people starved for human interaction.
“Some people just seemed so happy to talk to someone new,” said Teddy Germain, a Broward County resident who was stationed outside Miami Shores Elementary on Tuesday. He was there to support Gepsie Metellus, who’s running to represent District 3 on the Miami-Dade County Commission. That seat that will soon be vacated by term-limited Audrey Edmonson.
Campaigns for several District 3 candidates said voters trickled into voting precincts in Miami Shores and North Miami on Tuesday, but far fewer than in previous years.
The entrances to six polling locations were flanked by many signs, overwhelmingly for Keon Hardemon, a Miami commissioner seeking the county post and Metellus.
Evans Vertus, a 21-year-old worker for Florida Rep. Dotie Joseph, D-108, said Tuesday was his second foray into electioneering after canvassing for Hilary Clinton when he was in high school in 2016. Sitting under a relentless sun outside Stanton Memorial Baptist Church in North Miami, Vertus said of the few voters occasionally walking in to vote, most were elders.
“A lot of people voted early,” he said.
What’s it like at Wynwood?
4:20 p.m.: At the Wynwood Community Resource Center around noon, Sarah Rifkin said she voted in-person because she was worried that a mail-in ballot would not be counted correctly. But, the 25-year-old said she felt safe voting in-person as there was no one else inside when she cast her ballot.
John Morris, 25, went with Rifkin to vote. He said he also felt voting in-person was the safest bet.
“It was a little nervousness on whether or not vote-by-mail would be in on time to actually count,” he said. “We just wanted to assure we actually had a say in this election,” he said.
Looking ahead to the November presidential elections, Rifkin and Morris, both Democrats, said they plan to vote in-person, but are worried about more crowded polling locations.
“Especially with what’s happening in the last week or so with the post office, I just don’t know,” Rifkin said. “But I feel safer casting it physically than voting by mail, which I have done before. I just don’t trust it now.”
“We want to make sure our votes count,” Morris said, “but I don’t know if it’s going to be more chaotic in November than it was today where it took us about five minutes to vote.”
Nalini Herpal, 33, said she came to vote in-person in Wynwood because to her, voting is always a priority above everything else in her life.
“I think it’s very important that we utilize our right to vote,” she said. “Especially myself as a person of color I think that’s very selfish not to come out and utilize our rights especially as citizens in this country.”
Herpal, a Democrat, said she is worried if she had mailed in her ballot that it would not have been counted.
“There’s no way I would have mailed it in.” she said. “I feel like my vote is way too important to not count so for me, if I have to take off from work, if I have to pass up on Happy Hour, it doesn’t matter, this is my priority.”
But, she said she felt safe at the Wynwood polling location and said it was a quick process since the building was so empty.
“I love the fact that as soon as you walk out they are offering hand sanitizer,” Herpal said. “Not only is it safe, you feel comfortable going inside there.”
How a Broward County teen organized hundreds of young DNC delegates during a pandemic
4 p.m.: Like most high school seniors, Joseph Mullen had a lot of time on his hands this spring.
As the coronavirus pandemic began to close schools across Florida in March, the Broward County 18-year-old — who had become increasingly interested in the politics of climate change, gun violence and education policy — filled out a form to run as a delegate for Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders at the 2020 Democratic National Convention, Alex Daugherty from the Herald’s Washington Bureau reported.
Sanders dropped out of the race but the Florida teen organized a Young Delegates Coalition to advocate at the Democratic National Convention for changes like legalizing marijuana, ending student loan debt and more speaking time for Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
Read the story here.
The view from Hollywood Culture and Community Center
2:50 p.m.: As of 2 p.m, Primary Day voting at the Hollywood Culture and Community Center in Broward County had been slow but safe, according to the precinct’s clerk.
“Everybody’s been wearing masks. We have a cleaning person cleaning the booths constantly. We have good supplies,” she said.
The booths were spaced out and, as of early afternoon, there were no more than three voters in the room at a time.
Meredith and Travis Brody, 33 and 34 respectively, voted at the center around 2 p.m. using their own pens and sanitizing wipes they brought with them.
“We think voting is important but you have to be safe,” Meredith said. “Today was important because there were a lot of races for people who make decisions at the local and state levels.”
The Democrats from Hollywood plan to vote in person again in the Nov. 3 election, citing concerns with the United States Postal Service.
South Beach voters
2:30 p.m.: Voters at Fienberg Fisher K-8 (Precinct 36) in Miami Beach had a very smooth experience. No lines, no long waits and no large groups of campaigners awaited them. Only three people, all of whom donned masks, huddled in their respective voting booths at noon.
The only issue? An unbearable humidity that left voters drenched in sweat upon their exit. The poll workers, however, appeared undisturbed by the heat as they sat with their books or talked on the phone. Whatever discomfort they felt would soon be placated as city workers dragged in a large cooler filled with water bottles.
At St. Simon’s Episcopal
2:20 p.m.: A slow stream of voters have been trickling into the St. Simon’s Episcopal Church in Miami all morning, according to one poll worker.
Gregorrio Lleonart, 74, walked into the polling center at about 1 p.m. using the assist of a walker, the mid-afternoon sun blazing overhead.
Lleonart said he has never considered voting by mail — and this year was no different. “I’m coming from Cuba,” he said. “Now I am free and I need to vote.”
Lleonart has voted in person in every election for about 40 years and he said will continue to do so because it shows his commitment to voting. “It’s the effort, for me to come here and vote,” he said. “That means that I want to.”
He said he plans on casting his vote at the St. Simon’s Episcopal Church on Nov. 3 for President Trump.
Every voter has obeyed social distancing and has entered the polling center wearing a mask, according to the poll worker.
Nearly 6,000 polls open ‘without issue’
1 p.m.: Florida Secretary of State Laurel Lee said close to 6,000 precincts across the state opened without issue Tuesday morning as more than 2.7 million Floridians had already cast their vote, including 2.2 million vote by mail.
That compares to 1.8 million votes cast through early voting and vote by mail prior to the August primary in 2016.
According to the Division of Elections, 1.1 million Democrats cast their votes by mail by Tuesday, and 766,537 Republicans. There were 558,430 in-person early votes with Republicans having a slight advantage with 298,314 votes compared to 221,701 Democrats.
Lee said that all 67 Florida supervisors of elections reported they “have taken health precautions to keep voters and election workers safe, and to mitigate the spread of COVID-19,’’ she said.
“We have worked with them, and with emergency managers across the state to ensure that they have necessary supplies to keep pulling locations sanitized for those voters who will be voting at the polls today, sanitation and safety are top priority.”
She said all equipment will be sanitized and every precinct is expected to follow safety protocols.
“We prioritize the health and safety of voters and of our election workers,’’ she said. “We asked Florida voters to prioritize health and welfare welfare as well.”
Florida’s primary is a trial run for the general election, which is expected to have an unprecedented volume of mail-in ballots as voters stay away from the polls because of the coronavirus.
With postal slowdowns prompted by federal cutbacks threatening to delay the delivery of mail-in ballots by the 7 p.m. deadline today, Lee said her agency is “in communication with the United States Postal Service to ensure that returned vote by mail ballots are received by supervisors of elections by poll closing at 7pm, local time.”
Because of the expected delays, Gov. Ron DeSantis has extended the time to elections officials are allowed to count the ballots, but he has not extended the deadline for when they must be received.
In Florida, a ballot must be received by 7 p.m. on election day to be counted and anyone with a vote by mail ballot may return it in person to their local supervisors of elections office, but not to the precinct polling places.
Lee said local officials “have been working diligently” to canvas and count the ballots already received to be prepared to announce the results at the end of the day.
“I know many of them are up to date,’’ she said. “We’re still receiving, of course the vote by mail ballots yesterday and today so those numbers will be added to the total vote by mail ballots received so far, but all reports from our supervisors and that process is going smoothly and going very well.”
Lee said “there are no reported security issues” and said her agency is “monitoring security statewide in collaboration with our law enforcement partners” which include the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security, the Postal Inspection Service, FDLE, and local law enforcement.
She urged people not to rely on social media, which has been known to amplify misinformation about polling sites and false rumors but instead turn to trusted sources and official sites.
“It is very important that voters rely on trusted sources for information regarding their polling locations, and what is happening at the polls today instead of relying on information that they might see on social media about precincts and about voting,’’ she said.
“As is true in every election, the most up to date and accurate information about polling locations, is going to be on the voters respective Supervisor of Elections website,’’ she said.
Lee reminded voters that they can still request a vote by mail ballot and pick it up, or have it picked up for them at their local Supervisor of Elections office today.
If a voter has been ordered to self isolate, or is experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, and has not yet voted that voter may designate someone to pick up their vote by mail ballot for them as long as they sign two affidavits, one to pick up and another to deliver the ballot, and those affidavits as well as the ballot must be brought into the local supervisors of elections office by their designee.
These forms are available in English and in Spanish on the Department of State’s website, and on local Florida supervisors of elections web sites. All ballots must be returned by 7 p.m. today, when polls close.
The Division of Elections offers a toll free voter assistance hotline, 1-866-308-6739.
Want to drop off your ballot? You can only do it at four places
12:15 p.m.: Did you wait until today to drop off your vote-by-mail ballot into an on-site ballot box in Miami-Dade?
You can’t do it at your regular precinct on Election Day.
You can only do it at one of these four designated locations on Election Day by 7 p.m.:
▪ Elections Department Main Office, 2700 NW 87th Ave. Miami
▪ Stephen P. Clark Center, Elections Branch Office, 111 NW 1st St., Lobby, Miami
▪ North Dade Regional Library, 2455 NW 183rd St. Miami Gardens
▪ South Dade Regional Library, 10750 SW 211th St., Cutler Bay.
In Broward they can only be dropped off at:
▪ Supervisor of Elections Branch Office at the Lauderhill Mall (Rear Entrance), 1501 NW 40th Ave., Lauderhill
▪ Broward County Administration Building, 115 S. Andrews Ave. Room 102 (Brickell Avenue Entrance), Fort Lauderdale.
Mayoral candidate expected to vote soon
11:45 a.m.: At the Shenandoah Branch Library (precinct number 667) in Miami, a steady trickle of voters showed up to cast their ballots throughout the morning.
A handful waited in line to vote at about 11 a.m. Upon entrance, everyone was asked to disinfect their hands with gel from a container set up at the front door in which users pressed a foot pedal to obtain the gel.
No taking chances.
Many more voters were expected throughout the day, including mayoral candidate Alex Penelas.
Poll workers said all had gone smoothly so far.
Poll workers outnumber voters at one precinct but voters have a mission
10:45 a.m.: About two hours into Primary Day voting around 9 a.m., the number of campaign volunteers lining the entrance to Scott Lake Elementary School in Miami Gardens outnumbered the number of individuals walking in to cast their vote. But for those individuals who decided to vote in person this morning, it was an easy decision — even during a pandemic.
“I feel it’s important for me to cast that vote myself, physically,” said Lillian Carter, 71, who has cast her vote at Scott Lake Elementary School in every election for the last 41 years. “Voting is something that I don’t take for granted.”
Voting this time around — during a pandemic, in a COVID-19 hot spot — went smoothly, Carter said. “We had the social distancing, we had to be that six feet apart, everything was pleasant, professionally done, [a] very good experience.”
Ja’Nyre Parker, 35, who attended Scott Lake Elementary School, said that voting is her “inherited right.” Parker agreed that voting did not feel that different this year. “Outside of the masks, that’s about it, but it was pretty clean, pretty safe, not a lot of heavy traffic in, there’s spacing in there, so it was a pretty good experience, nothing out of the norm,” she said.
Parker said that voting in person was the most direct way for her to cast her ballot. “Going in is always the option for me,” she said. “I have friends that work for elections, and just the hustle and bustle of trying to get the absentees in ... it’s a lot, so I’d rather just come in and get it done as opposed to waiting for it to come in the mail.”
Miami Gardens resident Marlisa Screen, 49, voted in person because she said she did not trust voting by mail. “I see that the postal services are already having issues and problems with the mail being delayed,” she said. “My daughter runs a business, and we’ve been having issues with the mail, so I wouldn’t try to mail that ballot.”
Carter and Parker, both Democrats, said that they plan on voting in person in November, too. “I’m focused on both [elections],” Carter said. “I feel that this one is important, the one on November 3 is very important. Both are important.”
Do I need to wear a mask when I vote? How to cast your ballot safely amid COVID-19
10 a.m.: Yes, you need to wear a mask to vote. We are still in a COVID-19 pandemic and it’s the law.
Read the story here.
A change in venue
10 a.m.: Voters in Precinct 14 looking to vote at the North Shore Park and Youth Center in North Beach Tuesday morning were greeted with the news that their polling place had been moved five blocks north and combined with Precinct 11 at Biscayne Elementary School on 77th Street.
The reason for the move given by polling workers: Because the school remains closed, resources could be saved by having both polling places under one roof.
Maybe that’s why only 12 voters had shown up by 9 a.m. to vote in Tuesday’s primary, according to one poll place worker.
Turnout, mail votes are key to Miami-Dade’s upside-down, record-setting August primary
9:45 a.m.: In developments that could influence the outcome of important races on the ballot in Tuesday’s election, turnout trends among Democrats and Republicans have flip-flopped from just four years ago, with Democrats building a 15-point, pre-Election Day advantage.
Republicans, who once dominated mail ballots, had cast more votes in-person than Democrats heading into Sunday, according to information from the state and Miami-Dade Supervisor of Elections. But Democrats, who previously favored early voting, are voting by mail this time in unprecedented numbers.
Read the story here.
This story was originally published August 18, 2020 at 10:38 AM.
