Court: Voters May See List of Candidates (Fla)

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Voters deciding on a replacement for disgraced Rep. Mark Foley may be provided with a list of candidates in the race as they enter the voting booth next month, an appeals court ruled Friday.

Foley's name will appear on the Nov. 7 ballot because his resignation came too late to make changes after revelations that the Florida Republican sent lurid electronic messages to male teenage congressional pages. A replacement GOP candidate, Joe Negron, is running in Foley's place.

Republicans proposed posting signs at polling places that explained a vote for Foley would go to Negron to avoid voter confusion. But Democrats challenged the idea in court, saying it would amount to a last-minute plug for Negron.

A three-judge panel of the 1st District Court of Appeals ruled Friday that providing notices was fine, but only if the notices include other candidates' names. The court did not address how the information should be given out -- such as whether the notices can be handed to voters or posted.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-Foleys-District-Polls.html?_r=1&oref=slogin