Florida Florida Statutes

§ 101.68 — Canvassing of vote-by-mail ballot

FS § 101.68Ch. 101

Statute text

(1)(a) The supervisor of the county where the absent elector resides shall receive the voted ballot, at which time the supervisor shall compare the signature of the elector on the voter's certificate with the signature of the elector in the registration books or the precinct register to determine whether the elector is duly registered in the county and must record on the elector's registration record that the elector has voted. During the signature comparison process, the supervisor may not use any knowledge of the political affiliation of the elector whose signature is subject to verification.

(b)An elector who dies after casting a vote-by-mail ballot but on or before election day shall remain listed in the registration books until the results have been certified for the election in which the ballot was cast. The supervisor shall safely keep the ballot unopened in his or her office until the county canvassing board canvasses the vote pursuant to subsection (2).

(c)If two or more vote-by-mail ballots for the same election are returned in one mailing envelope, the ballots may not be counted.

(d)Except as provided in subsection (4), after a vote-by-mail ballot is received by the supervisor, the ballot is deemed to have been cast, and changes or additions may not be made to the voter's certificate. (2)(a) The county canvassing board may begin the canvassing of vote-by-mail ballots upon the completion of the public testing of automatic tabulating equipment pursuant to s. 101.5612(2), but must begin such canvassing by no later than noon on the day following the election. However, notwithstanding any such authorization to begin canvassing or otherwise processing vote-by-mail ballots early, no result shall be released until after the closing of the polls in that county on election day. Any supervisor, deputy supervisor, canvassing board member, election board member, or election employee who releases the results of a canvassing or processing of vote-by-mail ballots prior to the closing of the polls in that county on election day commits a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.

(b)To ensure that all vote-by-mail ballots to be counted by the canvassing board are accounted for, the canvassing board shall compare the number of ballots in its possession with the number of requests for ballots received to be counted according to the supervisor's file or list. (c)1. The canvassing board must, if the supervisor has not already done so, compare the signature of the elector on the voter's certificate or on the vote-by-mail ballot cure affidavit as provided in subsection (4) with the signature of the elector in the registration books or the precinct register to see that the elector is duly registered in the county and to determine the legality of that vote-by-mail ballot. A vote-by-mail ballot may only be counted if:a. The signature on the voter's certificate or the cure affidavit matches the elector's signature in the registration books or precinct register; however, in the case of a cure affidavit, the supporting identification listed in subsection (4) must also confirm the identity of the elector; or b. The cure affidavit contains a signature that does not match the elector's signature in the registration books or precinct register, but the elector has submitted a current and valid Tier 1 identification pursuant to subsection (4) which confirms the identity of the elector. For purposes of this subparagraph, any canvassing board finding that an elector's signatures do not match must be by majority vote and beyond a reasonable doubt. 2. The ballot of an elector who casts a vote-by-mail ballot shall be counted even if the elector dies on or before election day, as long as, before the death of the voter, the ballot was postmarked by the United States Postal Service, date-stamped with a verifiable tracking number by a common carrier, or already in the possession of the supervisor. 3. A vote-by-mail ballot is not considered illegal if the signature of the elector does not cross the seal of the mailing envelope. 4. If any elector or candidate present believes that a vote-by-mail ballot is illegal due to a defect apparent on the voter's certificate or the cure affidavit, he or she may, at any time before the ballot is removed from the envelope, file with the canvassing board a protest against the canvass of that ballot, specifying the precinct, the voter's certificate or the cure affidavit, and the reason he or she believes the ballot to be illegal. A challenge based upon a defect in the voter's certificate or cure affidavit may not be accepted after the ballot has been removed from the mailing envelope. 5. If the canvassing board determines that a ballot is illegal, a member of the board must, without opening the envelope, mark across the face of the envelope: “rejected as illegal.” The cure affidavit, if applicable, the envelope, and the ballot therein shall be preserved in the manner that official ballots are preserved.

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Legislative history

s. 22, ch. 2003-415; s. 4, ch. 2004-232; s. 41, ch. 2005-278; s. 26, ch. 2016-37.