Technically Speaking
By Perry Busby
Just when we thought we had seen everything in this 2020 election cycle—from a crowded Democrat field with twenty-six candidates, to the impeachment of the current president, and the miraculous resurrection of Joe Biden’s campaign from an all but certain political grave—COVID-19 enters the race, causing party leaders to come up with new ways to engage voters and build enthusiasm, while leaving voters in the dark wondering how they can fulfill their civic obligation without putting themselves and others at risk.
In March, as the number of coronavirus began to climb and governors were implementing Stay-At-Home orders, state officials in Florida chose to proceed with the scheduled March 17 Presidential Preference Primary election.
Although the outcome was pretty much determined before the results were posted, there were some interesting take aways:
general results
Overall voter turnout was 25.59%, a near 11-point drop (36.44%) when compared with turnout for the 2016 Presidential Preference Primary. The biggest drop in turnout was among Republican voters, where there was a 28-point drop. Only 44,209 Republicans (a 17.58% turnout) bothered to cast a ballot. There was also a slight decrease in turnout among Democrats (3%). Whether the drop can be attributed to heightened concerns about the coronavirus or a lack of interest in the candidates is not certain.
Number of Vote-by-Mail (VBM) ballots was almost equal to number of ballots cast on Election Day, and each was greater than number of Early Voting ballots.
There were 863 VBM ballots not considered because they arrived after the 7 pm Election Day deadline. This was more than all rejected VBM, Early Voting and Election Day ballots combined.
Vote-By-Mail
Primary reason for rejected VBM ballots was due to no signature on ballot mailing envelope.
35 envelopes returned without a ballot enclosed. Voters who returned empty envelopes were marked as NOT voting, which meant they were eligible to cast a ballot during early voting period or on Election Day. SOE contacted these voters, and a few voters indicated to the SOE they would be voting via early voting or on Election Day and that is why they returned the envelope without a ballot.
78 rejected because there was no signature on the ballot mailing envelope.
7 rejected because the ballot mailing envelope had been signed by someone other than the voter (i.e., name on envelope did not match voter registration name).
6 rejected because the signature on the ballot mailing envelope did not match signature on record.
2 rejected due to Civil Rights issues (unable to vote as voting rights not restored).
3 rejected because they were returned by voters who were deceased (What isn’t clear is whether the people died after casting their ballot or whether they were dead at the time the VBM was mailed from SOE office).
Broward County has two elections scheduled this year, the local primary election (August) and the general election (November). As state and county leaders deliberate on how to best ensure these elections are accessible, secure and safe, they must also approach these discussions with a willingness to look for solutions that will propel us forward as opposed to sticking to antiquated methodologies that aren’t in step with their constituents.
I want to give a big shout of thanks to Monica Elliot who serves as Chair of Voting Services for the Broward County chapter of the League of Women Voters, for her assistance in compiling this data. Additionally, the Citizens Audit initiative will be releasing their audit results in the coming week.
Let me know what you think. Email me at perrybusby03@gmail.com. As always stay tuned to the Westside Gazette for more information about your vote.
