TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA — Today, Governor DeSantis signed an emergency Executive Order to ensure that Floridians affected by Hurricane Ian are provided with adequate access to voting in the General Election.
The order authorizes the Supervisors of Elections in Charlotte, Lee, and Sarasota counties to extend the number of days for early voting and designate additional early voting locations. In addition, the early voting period may begin as early as Monday, October 24, 2022, and can extend through Election Day, November 8, 2022.
Voters in Charlotte, Lee, and Sarasota counties may also request by phone that their vote-by-mail ballot be mailed to an address different from their address of record. Voters must still provide identification in the same manner as absent military personnel and overseas voters.
Each county, named in the order, will now be able to set new locations for secure ballot intake stations as long as proper notice is given to residents. Polling locations may be relocated as necessary throughout each county and eligible poll workers will be expanded to include any poll worker who was previously trained for the 2020 election cycle.
RECOMMENDED BY SECRETARY OF STATE
Florida’s Secretary of State Cord Byrd participated in discussions with the Florida Supervisors of Elections (FSE), a nonprofit association representing the Supervisors of Elections from all of Florida's 67 counties. Byrd recommended the provisions in the Executive Order based on the collective feedback of the Supervisors of Elections across the state, and at the written requests of the Supervisors of Elections in Charlotte, Lee, and Sarasota counties.
“In the wake of Hurricane Ian, the Florida Department of State has worked with Florida’s Supervisors of Elections and Governor DeSantis to ensure that the 2022 General Election is administered as efficiently and securely as possible across the state and in the counties that received the heaviest damage,” said Secretary Byrd. “Florida will continue to lead the way in elections administration in 2022, and I am grateful for and confident that our local elections officials will have all of the resources and support they need to run another successful election.”
Since Hurricane Ian made landfall, Supervisors of Elections offices statewide have assessed their readiness for the upcoming election. Most have concluded that Ian’s impacts will not interfere with the election in their respective counties.
