Monroe County Supervisor of Elections Sherri Hodies joined Good Morning Keys on Keys Talk 96.9/102.5FM this morning to talk about the election.
11,802 vote-by-mail ballots have been sent to voters, but only about half have been returned so far. Anyone who still has ballots at home should return them as soon as possible.
Early voting has also been drawing strong participation – 2,404 voters had cast ballots through early voting, putting turnout about 59% ahead of the comparable early-voting period during the 2022 primary.
Early voting is available from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Saturday.
Voters can also return vote-by-mail ballots at secure ballot intake stations at the early voting locations, including the Supervisor of Elections offices, Plantation Key Community Center and Big Pine Key Community Park. After Saturday, ballots must be returned to a Supervisor of Elections office by 7 p.m. on Election Day to be counted.
Hodies said overall turnout stood at 14.66% of active eligible voters as of Wednesday morning.
Election Day is Tuesday, Aug. 18, with polls open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Voters must cast their ballots at their assigned precinct. Precinct information is available through the Supervisor of Elections website or on voters’ identification cards, and voters can also contact the elections office for assistance.
Hodies said interest in the primary has been noticeable, with election workers remaining busy at the county’s early voting locations.
“They are dedicated folks that come out, and they just are part of our team,” Hodies said. “They’re part of our family, and we thank them so much because we could not do this without those election workers.”
One of the biggest changes voters should be aware of concerns the reporting of precinct results on election night.
Hodies said some precincts previously relied on copper communication lines to transmit election results, but those outdated lines were recently removed before the primary election. The elections office had anticipated the possibility and prepared an alternative system.
Rather than transmit results over the internet, election officials will securely lock and seal the results, maintain a documented chain of custody and use secure couriers to transport them to the appropriate Supervisor of Elections office.
That could mean some precinct results take longer to reach the central offices.
Hodies said results from areas such as Sugarloaf Key, Marathon and Key Largo could take 30 minutes, an hour or potentially longer to arrive, depending on transportation.
“I will not use internet, not even for four to five seconds,” Hodies said. “And because of that, if we’re going to keep our accuracy, which we are, our security and our integrity and our election process, we must be able to transport these election results in.”
Hodies said the first election results should begin coming in shortly after the polls close. Early voting and vote-by-mail results will begin being downloaded at 7 p.m., with those results expected to be available by about 7:30 p.m., if not sooner.
The precinct results may follow at different times because of the secure transportation process.
Hodies said the temporary process is expected to affect only the primary. The elections office is transitioning to a new modem technology for the general election that has been approved and certified by the state Division of Elections.
The new technology will provide additional security through encryption, firewalls and other security protocols while allowing results to be transmitted without using the internet.
“We will be up and running for the general,” Hodies said.
Hodies has informed candidates and local political party officials about the changes so they can prepare for the possibility of delayed precinct returns.
She also encouraged voters to follow the Supervisor of Elections office through its website and social media accounts for election information and updates.
With several local races expected to be decided during the Aug. 18 primary, Hodies emphasized the importance of voters knowing where they are assigned to vote and making sure their ballots are submitted on time.
The Supervisor of Elections office will continue providing election updates throughout the final days of early voting and on election night.
For more information, click here: https://www.votemonroeflkeys.gov/