About 350 mail-in ballots for the Nov. 3 general election listed contests for the wrong city, elections officials said. The problem traces back to a single vendor mailing tied to an Oct. 7 delivery date, and replacement ballots are going out Friday to everyone affected.
The Volusia County Supervisor of Elections Office reported that roughly 350 vote-by-mail ballots were affected by the error, according to WFTV. The mix-up sent some voters ballots containing contests meant for another city entirely, rather than the races on their own local ballot. Officials said the issue appears limited to that single mailing linked to the Oct. 7 delivery date in the voter registration system, though the announcement did not identify the vendor responsible or name the cities involved.
Supervisor of Elections Lisa Lewis did not mince words about the impact. “I am deeply upset that this vendor’s error has affected our voters. They deserve better,” Lewis said, according to the station's report. She apologized to every voter affected for the frustration and concern caused, and said her office is taking steps to correct the problem and hold the vendor responsible. Lewis added that voters should be able to rely on receiving the correct ballot in the first place.
What Affected Voters Should Do
Anyone who believes they received an incorrect ballot is urged to call the elections office at 386-736-5930, per the same account. Staff there can review a voter's ballot information and explain next steps. Beyond the phone line, voters also have the option of simply voting in person, either during early voting or on Election Day, if they are worried their mailed ballot was wrong.
Early voting runs daily through Oct. 31, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., at nine locations spread across Volusia County, the station reported. Those who wait for Election Day on Nov. 3 will find polls open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., but anyone voting that day must go to their own assigned polling place rather than any site countywide.
Early Voting Numbers So Far
The timing lands in the middle of what has otherwise been a steady start to in-person voting. Lewis told the Daytona Times that things had gone pretty smoothly with a good turnout over the first couple of days of early voting, which began Monday, Oct. 19. On that opening day alone, 5,679 people voted, including 583 at the City Island Library and 245 at the Cherry Cultural & Educational Center in Daytona Beach. As of Oct. 20, the county's website showed 11,944 ballots cast during early voting and 32,834 vote-by-mail ballots returned, the paper noted.
The mail-ballot mix-up also follows a separate printing snag earlier in the month. Sample ballots for the Nov. 3 election were mailed later than planned after a delay from the elections office's printing vendor, according to Observer Local News. The vendor attributed that delay to the size of the printing job combined with internal company issues. Voters who want to check their own sample ballot can do so online at VolusiaElections.gov or by calling the same elections office number.
Similar Mishaps Elsewhere in Florida and Oregon
Volusia's vendor trouble isn't an isolated case this election cycle. In Orange County, a printing error affected 7,442 mail-in ballots for the Aug. 18 primary, about 1% of all primary ballots printed, after the vendor produced copies of a draft ballot instead of the final approved version, Central Florida Public Media reported. Orange County officials said they had accounted for all affected ballots and planned to duplicate each one onto a correct ballot publicly, anonymously, and under supervision before tabulation.
Across the country in Oregon, roughly 200 Deschutes County voters were sent the wrong ballot for the Nov. 3 election, according to Central Oregon Daily. Those voters are scheduled to receive corrected ballots in the mail, and the county clerk's office said it will ensure that only the valid ballot is counted for each of them.
What the Law Says About Mailed Ballots
Florida law sets specific rules for how vote-by-mail ballots must work. State statute requires supervisors of elections to enclose separate printed instructions with each mailed ballot, and a completed ballot generally must reach the county supervisor of elections no later than 7 p.m. on Election Day to count, per Florida Statutes, Section 101.65. Voters can also drop off completed vote-by-mail envelopes at an authorized secure ballot intake station at any early voting location. The same statute warns that a ballot is considered illegal and will not be counted if the signature on the voter's certificate does not match the signature on file.
