RULE NO.:RULE TITLE:
1S-2.051Federal Write-In Absentee Ballot
NOTICE OF CHANGE
Notice is hereby given that the following changes have been made to the proposed rule in accordance with subparagraph 120.54(3)(d)1., F.S., published in Vol. 39, No. 162, August 20, 2013 issue of the Florida Administrative Register.
(1) through (4) No change.
(4)(a) For state and local office election races, the voter must write in the non-federal designated part of the ballot. If the voter writes under the column “Office/Ballot Initiative,” the title of the applicable state or local candidate’s office and under the column marked “Candidate Name, Party Affiliation, or Initiative Vote,” the candidate’s name or party affiliation, the voter has made a definite choice. If the voter designates the candidate name or party in the box that is directly opposite of the office designated by the voter, the vote voter shall be counted. Otherwise, the vote shall not be counted.
(b) through (d) No change.
(e) If a candidate’s last name or initials are the same as a political party’s name or party abbreviated party code, the vote shall count for the candidate and not the political party, regardless of whether the candidate belongs to that party or the party has another candidate in the race. However, in order to count, the voter must designate the candidate’s office and first and last names properly. If under this scenario, the voter only designates the candidate’s last name, the vote shall not be counted. If the abbreviation or last name of a candidate is the same as the abbreviation or name of a political party to which the candidate does not belong, regardless of whether that party has another candidate in the race, if the office and the candidate’s first and last names are designated correctly, the vote shall count for that candidate, not the political party. However, if no information is indicated on the ballot besides the office, and the candidate’s last name that is the same as the political party’s name or abbreviation, the vote shall not be counted for either the candidate or the political party.
(f) If the voter writes in a vote for a candidate’s first or last name, but does not name the office, or incorrectly designate designates or incorrectly designates the office for which the candidate has qualified, no definite choice can be determined and the vote shall not be counted.
(g) through (i) No change.
(j) If unable to otherwise determine whether a voter has clearly indicated a definite choice, the canvassing board shall consider the entire ballot page for consistency in making such determination. The canvassing board may consider the entire ballot page for consistency in determining whether a voter has made a definite choice in a contest.
(5) No change.
