21,000 Florida mail-in ballots flagged due to signature issues

Advocates caution time has run out to trust the post office with your ballot.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Of the almost 4 million mail-in ballots cast so far in Florida, 21,000 have been flagged for missing or mismatched signatures and time is running out for voters to return ballots that haven’t been cast yet.

More than 400,000 votes were cast Monday alone, bringing the total to 6.5 million.

With voter turnout already at 44.5%, the 2020 election is on track to beat the 83% turnout record set in 1992.

Tuesday began with just under 2.1 million mail ballots outstanding and the traffic at a Tallahassee drop-off site was steady.

Poll workers helped identify ballots missing information before it was too late.

“Most of them come completely ready to put in the box,” said poll worker Valerie Witters.

Advocates caution time has run out to trust the post office with your ballot.

“At this point, we are suggesting that you still go and drop off your ballot. We no longer encourage the mailing in of your ballot,” said Juanica Fernandes with State Voices.

And advocacy groups point out Black and Hispanic voters are more likely to have signature issues.

“After the August primary, 35,000 votes were rejected and projections for the current election are expected to be much higher,” said Brad Ashwell with All Votes are Local.

The advocates also pointed to Jacksonville, where the Duval Canvassing Board initially refused to let television cameras view their decisions as they interpret voters' intentions. With pressure building, the board eventually decided Tuesday to continue to exclude news cameras but began live-streaming the process themselves.

“There has been a lack of transparency when it comes to the canvassing board. We are highly alarmed,” said Mone Holder with New Florida Majority.

You can track your mail ballot online at your local supervisor’s website.

If there is a problem, you can file a cure affidavit to fix it.

Voters with ballot problems have until 5 p.m. on the Thursday after the election to file their cure affidavit.


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