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Florida Governor Backs Voting Changes
Source: New York Times
MIAMI — Two months after Florida was denounced for its chaotic election process, Gov. Rick Scott on Thursday endorsed three major changes proposed by the state’s election supervisors.
Governor Scott said he would support increasing the number of early voting days, including adding back the Sunday before Election Day, widening the range of polling places and reducing the length of ballots.
In 2011, the Republican-controlled Legislature changed Florida’s election law by shortening the number of early voting days and hours and tightening other election rules, including voter registration. Mr. Scott, a Republican, signed the bill, despite criticism from Democrats and voter and civil rights groups who said Republicans simply wanted to reduce the number of Democrats voting.
<snip>
Mr. Scott’s endorsement comes on the same day as the release of a new report concluding that black and Latino voters were most affected by the 2011 changes.
Governor Scott said he would support increasing the number of early voting days, including adding back the Sunday before Election Day, widening the range of polling places and reducing the length of ballots.
In 2011, the Republican-controlled Legislature changed Florida’s election law by shortening the number of early voting days and hours and tightening other election rules, including voter registration. Mr. Scott, a Republican, signed the bill, despite criticism from Democrats and voter and civil rights groups who said Republicans simply wanted to reduce the number of Democrats voting.
<snip>
Mr. Scott’s endorsement comes on the same day as the release of a new report concluding that black and Latino voters were most affected by the 2011 changes.
Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/18/us/politics/florida-governor-backs-changes-in-election-law.html?smid=tw-share&_r=0
Here are some of the findings from the report that was cited in the article :
By cutting early voting from 14 to eight days and eliminating early voting on the Sunday
before the 2012 election, HB 1355 likely contributed to longer early voting lines at the polls,
causing in‐person early voting turnout to drop by more than 225,000 voters compared to
2008.
The reduction in opportunities to vote early under HB 1355 disproportionately affected
African American voters, insofar as nearly half of all blacks who voted in 2012 cast in‐person
early ballots. Although blacks made up less than 14 percent of the Florida electorate as of
November/December 2012, they cast 22 percent of all the early votes in 2012, roughly the
same percentage as in 2008.
African Americans and Hispanic voters were more likely than white voters to cast
provisional ballots and nearly twice as likely to have their provisional ballots rejected.
Quite possibly due to well‐founded fears of long lines at early voting and Election Day
polling sites resulting from HB 1355, absentee ballots—a much less reliable form of voting a
valid ballot—increased in 2012. Over 28 percent of all ballots cast in 2012 were absentee
ballots, nearly six percentage points higher than in 2008. Almost one percent of these
ballots were "rejected as illegal" in 2012 by county canvassing boards, and the African
American absentee ballot rejection rate was nearly twice the absentee ballot rejection rate
of white voters.
before the 2012 election, HB 1355 likely contributed to longer early voting lines at the polls,
causing in‐person early voting turnout to drop by more than 225,000 voters compared to
2008.
The reduction in opportunities to vote early under HB 1355 disproportionately affected
African American voters, insofar as nearly half of all blacks who voted in 2012 cast in‐person
early ballots. Although blacks made up less than 14 percent of the Florida electorate as of
November/December 2012, they cast 22 percent of all the early votes in 2012, roughly the
same percentage as in 2008.
African Americans and Hispanic voters were more likely than white voters to cast
provisional ballots and nearly twice as likely to have their provisional ballots rejected.
Quite possibly due to well‐founded fears of long lines at early voting and Election Day
polling sites resulting from HB 1355, absentee ballots—a much less reliable form of voting a
valid ballot—increased in 2012. Over 28 percent of all ballots cast in 2012 were absentee
ballots, nearly six percentage points higher than in 2008. Almost one percent of these
ballots were "rejected as illegal" in 2012 by county canvassing boards, and the African
American absentee ballot rejection rate was nearly twice the absentee ballot rejection rate
of white voters.
Read more: http://electionsmith.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/lwv-pr-herron-smith.pdf
3 replies
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= new reply since forum marked as read
Gee, I wonder if the republican dominated legislature is going to go along with his recommendations. 
Human waste is rather kind, if you ask me!