Bill Text: FL S0378 | 2011 | Regular Session | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Federal Write-in Absentee Ballot
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 2-1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-04-29 - Read 2nd time -SJ 585 [S0378 Detail]
Download: Florida-2011-S0378-Comm_Sub.html
Florida Senate - 2011 CS for SB 378
By the Committee on Rules Subcommittee on Ethics and Elections;
and Senator Gaetz
582-02144-11 2011378c1
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to the federal write-in absentee
3 ballot; amending s. 101.6952, F.S.; authorizing absent
4 uniformed services voters and overseas voters to use
5 the federal write-in absentee ballot to vote in any
6 federal and certain state or local elections, under
7 certain circumstances; prescribing requirements for
8 designating candidate choices; providing for the
9 disposition of valid votes involving joint
10 candidacies; allowing for abbreviations, misspellings,
11 and other minor variations in the name of an office,
12 candidate, or political party; authorizing the
13 submission of multiple ballots under certain
14 circumstances; detailing circumstances under which
15 votes in federal, state, and local races on the
16 federal write-in absentee ballot will be canvassed;
17 amending s. 101.5614, F.S.; establishing certain
18 canvassing procedures for federal write-in absentee
19 ballots; amending s. 102.166, F.S.; directing the
20 Department of State to adopt rules to determine what
21 constitutes a valid vote on a federal write-in
22 absentee ballot; providing restrictions; providing
23 minimum requirements; reenacting s. 102.166(5), F.S.,
24 to incorporate the amendment to s. 101.5614, F.S., in
25 a reference thereto; amending s. 104.18, F.S.;
26 conforming provisions to changes made by the act;
27 providing an effective date.
28
29 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
30
31 Section 1. Section 101.6952, Florida Statutes, is amended
32 to read:
33 101.6952 Absentee ballots for absent uniformed services and
34 overseas voters.—
35 (1) If an absent uniformed services voter’s or an overseas
36 voter’s request for an official absentee ballot pursuant to s.
37 101.62 includes an e-mail address, the supervisor of elections
38 shall:
39 (a) Record the voter’s e-mail address in the absentee
40 ballot record;
41 (b) Confirm by e-mail that the absentee ballot request was
42 received and include in that e-mail the estimated date the
43 absentee ballot will be sent to the voter; and
44 (c) Notify the voter by e-mail when the voted absentee
45 ballot is received by the supervisor of elections.
46 (2)(a) An absent uniformed services voter or an overseas
47 voter who makes timely application for but does not receive an
48 official absentee ballot may use the federal write-in absentee
49 ballot to vote in any federal election and any state or local
50 election involving two or more candidates.
51 (b)1. In an election for federal office, an elector may
52 designate a candidate by writing the name of a candidate on the
53 ballot. Except for a primary or special primary election, the
54 elector may alternatively designate a candidate by writing the
55 name of a political party on the ballot. A written designation
56 of the political party shall be counted as a vote for the
57 candidate of that party if there is such a party candidate in
58 the race.
59 2. In an election for a state or local office, an elector
60 may vote in the section of the federal write-in absentee ballot
61 designated for nonfederal races by writing on the ballot the
62 title of each office and by writing on the ballot the name of
63 the candidate for whom the elector is voting. Except for a
64 primary, special primary, or nonpartisan election, the elector
65 may alternatively designate a candidate by writing the name of a
66 political party on the ballot. A written designation of the
67 political party shall be counted as a vote for the candidate of
68 that party if there is such a party candidate in the race.
69 (c) In the case of a joint candidacy, such as for the
70 offices of President/Vice President or Governor/Lieutenant
71 Governor, a valid vote for one or both qualified candidates on
72 the same ticket shall constitute a vote for the joint candidacy.
73 (d) For purposes of this subsection and except where the
74 context clearly indicates otherwise, such as where a candidate
75 in the election is affiliated with a political party whose name
76 includes the word “Independent,” “Independence,” or similar
77 term, a voter designation of “No Party Affiliation” or
78 “Independent,” or any minor variation, misspelling, or
79 abbreviation thereof, shall be considered a designation for the
80 candidate, other than a write-in candidate, who qualified to run
81 in the race with no party affiliation. If more than one
82 candidate qualifies to run as a candidate with no party
83 affiliation, the designation shall not count for any candidate
84 unless there is a valid, additional designation of the
85 candidate’s name.
86 (e) Any abbreviation, misspelling, or other minor variation
87 in the form of the name of an office, the name of a candidate,
88 or the name of a political party must be disregarded in
89 determining the validity of the ballot.
90 (3)(a) An absent uniformed services voter or an overseas
91 voter who submits a federal write-in absentee ballot and later
92 receives an official absentee ballot may submit the official
93 absentee ballot. An elector who submits a federal write-in
94 absentee ballot and later receives and submits an official
95 absentee ballot should make every reasonable effort to inform
96 the appropriate supervisor of elections that the elector has
97 submitted more than one ballot.
98 (b) A federal write-in absentee ballot may not be canvassed
99 until 7 p.m. on the day of the election. Each federal write-in
100 absentee ballot received by 7 p.m. on the day of the election
101 shall be canvassed pursuant to ss. 101.5614(5) and 101.68,
102 unless the elector’s official absentee ballot is received by 7
103 p.m. on election day. If the elector’s official absentee ballot
104 is received by 7 p.m. on election day, the federal write-in
105 absentee ballot is invalid and the official absentee ballot
106 shall be canvassed. The time shall be regulated by the customary
107 time in standard use in the county seat of the locality.
108 (4)(2) For absentee ballots received from absent uniformed
109 services voters or overseas voters, there is a presumption that
110 the envelope was mailed on the date stated on the outside of the
111 return envelope, regardless of the absence of a postmark on the
112 mailed envelope or the existence of a postmark date that is
113 later than the date of the election.
114 Section 2. Subsection (5) of section 101.5614, Florida
115 Statutes, is amended to read:
116 101.5614 Canvass of returns.—
117 (5)(a) If any absentee ballot is physically damaged so that
118 it cannot properly be counted by the automatic tabulating
119 equipment, a true duplicate copy shall be made of the damaged
120 ballot in the presence of witnesses and substituted for the
121 damaged ballot. Likewise, a duplicate ballot shall be made of an
122 absentee ballot containing an overvoted race or a marked
123 absentee ballot in which every race is undervoted which shall
124 include all valid votes as determined by the canvassing board
125 based on rules adopted by the division pursuant to s.
126 102.166(4). All duplicate ballots shall be clearly labeled
127 “duplicate,” bear a serial number which shall be recorded on the
128 defective ballot, and be counted in lieu of the defective
129 ballot. After a ballot has been duplicated, the defective ballot
130 shall be placed in an envelope provided for that purpose, and
131 the duplicate ballot shall be tallied with the other ballots for
132 that precinct.
133 (b) A true duplicate copy shall be made of each federal
134 write-in absentee ballot in the presence of witnesses and
135 substituted for the federal write-in absentee ballot. The
136 duplicate ballot must include all valid votes as determined by
137 the canvassing board based on rules adopted by the division
138 pursuant to s. 102.166(4). All duplicate ballots shall be
139 clearly labeled “duplicate,” bear a serial number that shall be
140 recorded on the federal write-in absentee ballot, and be counted
141 in lieu of the federal write-in absentee ballot. After a ballot
142 has been duplicated, the federal write-in absentee ballot shall
143 be placed in an envelope provided for that purpose, and the
144 duplicate ballot shall be tallied with other ballots for that
145 precinct.
146 Section 3. Subsection (4) of section 102.166, Florida
147 Statutes, is amended, and, for the purpose of incorporating the
148 amendment made by the act to section 101.5614, Florida Statutes,
149 in a reference thereto, subsection (5) of section 102.166,
150 Florida Statutes, is reenacted, to read:
151 102.166 Manual recounts of overvotes and undervotes.—
152 (4)(a) A vote for a candidate or ballot measure shall be
153 counted if there is a clear indication on the ballot that the
154 voter has made a definite choice.
155 (b) The Department of State shall adopt specific rules for
156 the federal write-in absentee ballot and for each certified
157 voting system prescribing what constitutes a “clear indication
158 on the ballot that the voter has made a definite choice.” The
159 rules shall be consistent, to the extent practicable, and may
160 not:
161 1. Exclusively provide that the voter must properly mark or
162 designate his or her choice on the ballot; or
163 2. Contain a catch-all provision that fails to identify
164 specific standards, such as “any other mark or indication
165 clearly indicating that the voter has made a definite choice.”
166 (c) The rule for the federal write-in absentee ballot must
167 address, at a minimum, the following issues:
168 1. The appropriate lines or spaces for designating a
169 candidate choice and, for state and local races, the office to
170 be voted, including the proximity of each to the other and the
171 effect of intervening blank lines.
172 2. The sufficiency of designating a candidate’s first or
173 last name when no other candidate in the race has the same or a
174 similar name.
175 3. The sufficiency of designating a candidate’s first or
176 last name when an opposing candidate has the same or a similar
177 name, notwithstanding generational suffixes and titles such as
178 “Jr.,” “Sr.,” or “III.” The rule should contemplate the
179 sufficiency of additional first names and first initials, middle
180 names and middle initials, generational suffixes and titles,
181 nicknames, and, in general elections, the name or abbreviation
182 of a political party.
183 4. Candidate designations containing both a qualified
184 candidate’s name and a political party, including where the
185 party designated is the candidate’s party, is not the
186 candidate’s party, has an opposing candidate in the race, or
187 does not have an opposing candidate in the race.
188 5. Situations where the abbreviation or name of a candidate
189 is the same as the abbreviation or name of a political party to
190 which the candidate does not belong, including where the party
191 designated has another candidate in the race or does not have a
192 candidate in the race.
193 6. The use of marks, symbols, or language, such as arrows,
194 quotation marks, or the word “same” or “ditto,” to indicate that
195 the same political party designation applies to all listed
196 offices.
197 7. Situations where an elector designates the name of a
198 qualified candidate for an incorrect office.
199 8. Situations where an elector designates an otherwise
200 correct office name that includes an incorrect district number.
201 (5) Procedures for a manual recount are as follows:
202 (a) The county canvassing board shall appoint as many
203 counting teams of at least two electors as is necessary to
204 manually recount the ballots. A counting team must have, when
205 possible, members of at least two political parties. A candidate
206 involved in the race shall not be a member of the counting team.
207 (b) Each duplicate ballot prepared pursuant to s.
208 101.5614(5) or s. 102.141(7) shall be compared with the original
209 ballot to ensure the correctness of the duplicate.
210 (c) If a counting team is unable to determine whether the
211 ballot contains a clear indication that the voter has made a
212 definite choice, the ballot shall be presented to the county
213 canvassing board for a determination.
214 (d) The Department of State shall adopt detailed rules
215 prescribing additional recount procedures for each certified
216 voting system which shall be uniform to the extent practicable.
217 The rules shall address, at a minimum, the following areas:
218 1. Security of ballots during the recount process;
219 2. Time and place of recounts;
220 3. Public observance of recounts;
221 4. Objections to ballot determinations;
222 5. Record of recount proceedings; and
223 6. Procedures relating to candidate and petitioner
224 representatives.
225 Section 4. Section 104.18, Florida Statutes, is amended to
226 read:
227 104.18 Casting more than one ballot at any election.—Except
228 as provided in s. 101.6952, whoever willfully votes more than
229 one ballot at any election commits is guilty of a felony of the
230 third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083,
231 or s. 775.084.
232 Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2011.
