Hurricane Ian damage may prevent some Central Florida voters from receiving mail ballots

DeLAND, Fla. – Elections staff in Volusia County spent a lot of Tuesday working vote-by-mail poll envelopes by means of postage stamping machines and stacking them in bins in preparation for the ballots to be delivered to voters’ properties.

While some Central Florida elections supervisors have been in a position to get ballots to the put up workplace earlier than Hurricane Ian arrived final week, others deliberately waited for the unhealthy climate to go.

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“We were scheduled to mail out our ballots last Thursday, on the 29th, and I said, ‘No, the storm is coming. We’re going to hold off,’” Volusia County Supervisor of Elections Lisa Lewis stated. “So we’re mailing out tomorrow.”

With many Central Florida neighborhoods flooded and hurricane particles blocking roads, postal staff may be unable to ship some of these ballots to voters’ properties within the coming days.

“If you don’t have a mail receptacle or if you’re out of your home right now, please contact your local post office where your mail would come through normally. They will hold it for you and you can pick it up there,” Lewis stated. “If for any reason [vote-by-mail ballots] can’t be delivered and you don’t have it held, it will be returned to us because they are not forwarded.”

Voters who’ve requested a mail poll and don’t obtain one are inspired to contact their native Supervisor of Elections workplace for assist.

“Florida Statutes provide a method of having the ballot mailed to an address other than the address of residence,” stated Lake County Supervisor of Elections Alan Hays. “That process requires a signed request from the voter with the alternate address on it. The request must include either the voter’s driver’s license number or the last four digits of their social security number.”

Although Marion County sustained little damage from Hurricane Ian, elections officers are reminding voters that there are a number of methods to solid a poll within the 2022 basic election.

“If a voter doesn’t use their vote-by-mail ballot, either it didn’t arrive or they choose not to vote that method, they can just go to an early voting site or an Election Day polling place and vote in person,” stated Marion County Supervisor of Elections Wesley Wilcox. “Our system automatically confirms the vote-by-mail ballot has not been returned, and then allows the in-person check-in.”

So far there aren’t any stories that the hurricane broken any early voting places in Central Florida.

“We have nine early voting sites. They are good,” stated Osceola County Supervisor of Elections Mary Jane Arrington. “Early voting will go on as planned.”

At least one Election Day polling location in Deltona was impacted by the storm, so Volusia County’s elections supervisor will quickly start looking for an alternate website.

“We’re going to be open for voting,” stated Lewis. “Don’t you worry about that.”

The deadline to register to vote within the 2022 basic election is Oct.11.

Vote-by-mail ballots might be requested by means of Oct. 29 and should be returned to the Supervisor of Elections workplace no later than 7:00 p.m. on Election Day Nov. 8.

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