Common Questions Regarding Voting
Since early October, the League has been answering voter questions, including from members, via phone, email, and at various events. Some of the more common questions are listed and answered below. Share this information! We need Broward voters to be election ready! Encourage voters to vote-by-mail or vote early. Think of Election Day as your last chance to vote, not the only time you can vote.
If I do NOT vote (fill in the oval) in every race or question on the ballot, will my ballot be rejected?
NO, your ballot will not be rejected!! Your ballot will be accepted and scanned, whether you vote by mail or in person. The races or questions completed on your ballot will be counted. The election term used when a vote is not cast in a race or question is undervote.
Who are these people and how do I decide whether to vote for them?
This question is being asked regarding the merit retention vote for Florida Supreme Court justices and 4th District Court of Appeal (DCA) judges. Unlike county and circuit court judges, Florida Supreme Court justices and DCA judges are initially appointed by the Governor. Every six years, these justices and judges are placed on the ballot for voters to determine whether they should remain on their courts for another six-year term. The justices and judges do not have opponents. The electorate simply votes yes or no to retain them or not.
Deciding whether to vote to retain justices and judges is a difficult decision to make. Go to our home page look for the About Judicial Races section for informational documents. The link to the forum we conducted for our local county and circuit court candidates is also in this section.
Can you explain the proposed Florida constitutional amendments and the Broward County Charter questions on my ballot?
This is difficult to do over the phone, but we do are best. If people have access to the internet, we encourage them to go to either Vote411.org (input your address to see what is on your ballot) or to our home page LWVBroward.org. For the latter, look for the links for amendments and charter questions.
I just moved, either within the county or from another county in Florida. Is it too late to register to vote?
If you were not already registered to vote in Florida, then October 11 was the last day to do so for the November 8 election. However, if you were already registered to vote in Florida, then you can update your name, address, and signature up to and on Election Day.
The League suggests that you do this online at RegisterToVoteFlorida.gov. This ensures that the signature on your FL Driver License or FL Identification Card becomes the signature of record for your voter registration. When you need to know how you should sign the mailing envelope of your Vote-By-Mail ballot or sign-in when voting in person, you simply look at your driver license or ID card. Print or take a screenshot photo of the receipt generated after you update your voter registration online. This provides date and time and a reference number to use as proof.
If you use the paper form to update this information, take a photo of the signature line and store in your phone for future reference.
Don’t know if your information is up to date? Look it up NOW at browardvotes.gov, and click on the My Voter Info icon.
Why are Republican candidates listed first?
An election law dictates the order. See Florida Statute 101.151(3)(a) and quoted, in part, here: “The names of the candidates of the party that received the highest number of votes for Governor in the last election in which a Governor was elected shall be placed first for each office on the general election ballot . . .” This law was passed when the Democrats were leading the state.
For nonpartisan races, such as county and circuit court judicial groups and school board districts, the candidate order is alphabetical.