If you intend to vote in the Nov. 6 general election, and you’re not yet registered, today is your last chance.
You must must complete a voter registration application and submit it to the Supervisor of Elections Office in person, by mail or drop it in the drop box by the flag pole in front of the Government Services Building by close of business this afternoon. If mailed, the registration form must be post-marked by October 9. You can download a voter registration form here. Voter registration applications are also available at the elections office, at the supervisor’s website, at local schools, government offices and post offices.
Sample Ballots for the November 6, 2012 General Election were to be delivered Wednesday, October 3 and Thursday, October 4th by the US Postal Service. One Sample Ballot was mailed per voters household.
The Sample Ballot also appears in full below, and may be downloaded. Keep in mind: this is the longest ballot in memory–not because of the number of races on the ballot. Those are at a quite manageable level. But because of the proposed constitutional amendments the Florida Legislature has placed on the ballot.
Rather than publish summaries, as required by law, the Legislature exempted itself from the shorter formats and opted to publish the complete language for each amendment. By doing so, the Legislative proposals’ language could avoid getting approval from the Florida Supreme Court (which did throw out some of the summaries). The Legislature’s decision to run the full ballot language on each amendment has also been criticized as an attempt to intimidate voters, lengthen lines on election day and discourage turnout.
County Attorney Al Hadeed, in a pair of presentations to a civics group and to the Flagler County Commission, is urging voters to study the ballot before voting, and know which box they’ll check by the time they get to the voting booth, thus minimizing wait times. Alternately, Supervisor of Elections Kimberle Weeks is encouraging voters to complete their sample ballot and bring it with them to the voting booth. The ballot is two pages long, totaling four sides, on 14-inch paper. “Coming to the polls ready to vote with your ballot choices already known will make voting go very smoothly and quickly,” the supervisor says.
Voters are also encouraged to vote by absentee ballot or vote early. All voters are eligible to vote by absentee. You can file your request for an absentee ballot at the supervisor’s site, here. You may also call the elections office at 386/313-4170. Absentee ballots can be tracked on line for those who would like to confirm the elections office received their voted ballot.
Absentee ballots are counted in Florida. Absentee and early voting results are the first results to be released on election night.
When voting at the polls, a photo ID and signature identification are required. The most common form of ID is a valid Florida Driver’s License as it contains both the voters signature and photo. But any combination of the acceptable ID’s can be presented when voting at the polls. The acceptable forms of ID are:
1. Florida driver’s license.
2. Florida identification card issued by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.
3. United States passport.
4. Debit or credit card.
5. Military identification.
6. Student identification.
7. Retirement center identification.
8. Neighborhood association identification.
9. Public assistance identification.
Early Voting will be available at the Flagler County Public Library on Palm Coast Parwkway and Belle Terre (2500 Palm Coast Parkway, NW, Palm Coast), and at the Flagler County Supervisor of Elections Office, at the Government Services Building in Bunnell (1769 E. Moody Boulevard, Building 2, Suite 101).
Early voting will take place on eight successive days, beginning Oct. 27, through Nov. 3.
Saturday, Oct. 27, Sunday, Oct. 28, and Saturday, Nov. 3, early voting hours will be 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. From Monday, Oct. 29 to Friday, Nov. 2, early voting hours will be 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Flagler County Voting Flier, 2012 Elections
