Florida/Georgia Personal Injury & Workers Compensation

...required by Fla. Stat. § 101.67(3), F.S.A., the ballot will in no event be counted. Absolute strict compliance, even with mandatory provisions in every case, however, could reach absurd proportions. For example, under a former version of Fla. Stat. § 101.64, F.S.A., an elector who certified that he would be absent from the State on election day would not have strictly complied with the statutory requirement that the elector certify his intention to be absent from the county on election day....

...Similarly, it is contended that the alleged violation of secrecy destroyed the validity of these votes. (f) Thirty-two persons applied for and received ballots during normal business hours of the supervisor of registration on Thursday, May 24, prior to 5:00 p.m. Appellant contends that under Section 101.64, Florida Statutes 1955, F.S.A., the time for making application for an absentee ballot ended at 5:00 p.m., Wednesday, May 23....

...ertificate utilized "shall be substantially in ... [that] form... ." In the statutory form after the place for the voter's signature, the following appears: "Two Witnesses Eighteen (18) Years or Older" followed by places for two witness' signatures. Section 101.64(2) also provides: "The absent elector and the attesting witnesses shall execute the form on the envelope." Also, Section 101.65, Florida Statutes (1981), provides for an instruction sheet for absentee electors which is required to be substantially in the form set forth in that statute....

...nvelope which was signed by the elector and attesting witnesses did not recite the statutory reasons for which an elector is entitled to vote absentee. In providing for the furnishing to the absentee elector the necessary materials to vote absentee, Section 101.64, Florida Statutes (1981), requires the election supervisor to enclose a mailing envelope bearing "a certificate which shall be substantially in the following form." The form provided for is, in pertinent part, as follows: Note: Please...

...sentee ballot. The application was to be in substantially the form as set out in that statute. The form called for the elector to "check the appropriate reason" for which he qualified as an "absent elector" which reasons were reproduced in the form. Section 101.64, Florida Statutes (1971), provided for a similar form to be included in an "elector's certificate" form on the outer envelope containing the first envelope with the marked ballot. In other words, Section 101.64 (1971), called for the elector to again certify as to the specific reason for which he was authorized to vote absentee. In 1973, the Legislature amended Section 101.64, Chapter 73-157, Laws of Florida, eliminating from the elector's certificate the enumeration of reasons authorizing absentee voting and instead substituting the following: "[I] am entitled to vote an absentee ballot for the reason stat...

...ng the requirement of a written application in order for an elector to receive an absentee ballot and eliminating any requirement that the elector certify to the reason for voting absentee as a prerequisite for receiving an absentee ballot. However, Section 101.64 was amended by the same law by again modifying the elector's certificate form appearing on the outer envelope by the inclusion of the various reasons for which an elector may vote absentee and further providing: "[I] am entitled to vote an absentee ballot for the following reason: Check Only One " In 1981, the Legislature again amended the elector's certificate form in Section 101.64 by eliminating the requirement that the elector certify as to which of the reasons listed in the form entitled him to vote absentee. Instead, as indicated previously in this opinion, the 1981 version of the Section 101.64 form (which was applicable to the subject 1982 City election) provided for a certification in which the elector certifies that "I am voting absentee for one of the reasons stated above." And so no longer was the elector required at any...

...arking the ballot in secret. Section 101.66 was repealed by Chapter 75-174, Laws of Florida. No statute comparable to Section 101.66 was in effect at the time of the subject 1982 election. And so, although the statutes in existence in 1982 (Sections 101.64 and 101.65) did provide for the election official to send *748 to the absentee elector instructions for completing the absentee ballot and an elector's certificate in substantially the form set out in the statutes, there was no longer the spec...

...However, we think that this legislative action in 1977 is significant when it is realized that the Legislature has not seen fit to specifically provide for the invalidation of absentee ballots in which the voter's certification may vary from that provided for in Section 101.64. Neither the 1981 version of Section 101.64 (the version applicable in the instant case) nor any other applicable statutory provision indicates a legislative intent that the inclusion of the specific grounds for voting absentee on the voter's certification is essential to the validity of the ballot or that omission thereof will cause the ballot not to be counted. Indeed, the legislative history outlined above suggests the contrary. The essence of the 1981 version of Section 101.64 is the requirement that the elector certify that he is qualified to vote absentee under Florida law, not that the various criteria of absentee voting be reproduced in any particular place or form. If the voter, at the time he marks his absentee ballot, can certify generally, as contemplated by Section 101.64, that he is a qualified elector, [11] we do not see how the failure to include on the certification forms the various grounds for voting absentee can be regarded as kind of irregularity rendering invalid a ballot cast by an admittedly qualified elector....

...Our decision on this issue is not concerned with the validity of absentee ballots where voters, rather than officials, have deviated from a statutory requirement that is within the voters' control. Judge Nimmons' excellent analysis of the history of Section 101.64, Florida Statutes, and the various changes made to that section from time to time by the legislature convincingly demonstrates that the 1981 version of Section 101.64 applicable to this election contained no statutory requirement that a voter certify the specific reason for voting by absentee ballot....

...irregularities were calculated to affect the integrity of the ballot or election. We will treat this aspect of our inquiry later in this opinion after examining each of the categories of claimed irregularities. [9] The 1982 Legislature again amended Section 101.64 by restoring the requirement that the particular ground for voting absentee be specified in the elector's certificate....

...voting, the ballot becomes a nullity. F.S. § 101.63, F.S.A., provides that upon receipt of the application for absentee ballot, filled out and signed, it shall be filed and a list or card file kept of applicants to whom a ballot has been sent. F.S. § 101.64, F.S.A., provides for the manner and procedure of preparing and delivering the ballots to persons on the list provided for in § 101.63 and provides that an outer return envelope shall be included bearing a certificate....

...entee and setting the guidelines which must be followed in order to vote validly absentee, and we think that the appellant has demonstrated enough illegal ballots which would turn the election results into his favor. The certificate mandated by F.S. § 101.64, F.S.A., further requires the signature of the elector as well as the signature of an attesting witness, with his official title and address. A postal officer is required to apply his station cancellation stamp to this return envelope. § 101.64 also provides that "the absent elector and the attesting witness shall execute the said form on the envelope." F.S....

...If the signature alone were adequate to certify that the elector had a valid reason for voting absentee, there would be no reason whatsoever for the statutory forms for application and for the certificate on the return envelope as provided by F.S. §§ 101.62 and 101.64, F.S.A., nor would there be any sense to the language in § 101.63 pertaining to the application being filled out and signed or the language in § 101.65 pertaining to the filling out and signing of the elector's certificate....

...on by the custodian of the public record or the custodian's designee." Thus, in the absence of an exemption, records made or received by the supervisor of elections in connection with the transaction of official business are subject to disclosure. 3 Section 101.64 , Florida Statutes, requires that the voter wishing to vote by absentee ballot sign the certificate on the back of the absentee envelope....

...Florida Statutes. Sincerely, Charlie Crist Attorney General CC/tjw 1 Section 119.01 (1), Fla. Stat. And see , s. 119.07 (1)(a), Fla. Stat. 2 See , Art. I , s. 24 (a), Fla. Const. 3 See , s. 119.011 (1), Fla. Stat., defining "Public records." 4 See, s. 101.64 (1), Fla....

...to the canvass. Fourteen of those envelopes containing the Voter’s Certificate were rejected prior to being opened, leaving 598 envelopes believed to contain absentee ballots. After the envelopes containing the Voter’s Certificates, required by Section 101.64(1), Florida Statutes (1977), were removed and the votes tabulated, it was determined that only 597 ballots had been cast....

...different precinct, religious observance, change of residency within the state too late to register at the new address, or change of resi- dency outside the state if the voter is unable to vote under the laws of the new state. FLA. STAT. § 101.64 (1980)....