PASCO COUNTY, Fla — Election Day isn’t until November 5, but voters we talked to say they already know what to expect in the months ahead.
“I wish it was more peaceful like in that sense because I think it’s important regardless of what side you are on," said Sophia Arcese.
“I think our processes are great. I think I just dread the country, people have just become so angry. And it shows every day when you go out," said Robin Kilts.
One change in the voting process in Florida involves mail-in ballots. In 2021, the Florida Legislature passed a law requiring voters to request a mail-in ballot before each election cycle. Pasco County Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley says ballots are no longer automatically sent out from past requests.
“I know we had about 80,000 voters who had a standing request and it went away. We reached out to them in order to continue. They need to know they need to re-request it for each election cycle," said Corley.
A report in Politico found a more than 50% drop in mail-in ballot requests in Florida for the last midterm elections.
Democrats say the change was done to suppress votes, especially for low-income voters and those with limited transportation options.
Republicans who sponsored the legislation say it was done to make voter rolls more secure.
Corley says Florida’s mail-in voting system was safe and secure before and will continue to be.
“I think a lot of it has become very politicized, and I think some of the confusion is there are states that mail out ballots to every voter. Florida is not one of them. You have to request it. Number one, you have to be a registered voter to request it. When you request it we have to validate. You provide personally identifiable information," said Corley.
Corley and other election officials are trying to reach voters who still need to request mail-in ballots.
It must be done at least 12 days before the election and can be done online. As always, many people still have questions about the election process.
“If you send in the mail-in ballot do you actually get something that tells you your ballot has been counted, thank you? So, I think there needs to be some sort of tracking so people feel that their vote actually counted," said Corely.
Proof your vote was tabulated can be found on your Supervisor of Elections website.
Corley says we could see much longer lines if thousands more people vote in person in November.
“If we had voters that had consistently voted by mail and are now not going to but still vote in person that means they are going to be waiting in considerably longer lines. You can avoid those lines by simply re-requesting your vote by mail ballot," said Corley.
Experts say while the drop-off in mail-in ballots could impact both parties, it could mean serious problems for Democrats who have voted by mail more than Republicans in general elections since 2020.
