CLAY COUNTY, Fla. — Election officials in Clay County are taking voters behind the scenes to show how the Supervisor of Elections ensures fair, accurate and secure voting.
“The elections process by nature is very transparent. All of the events are publicly noticed, they’re open to the public to attend,” Supervisor of Elections for Clay County Chris Chambless said.
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He held an election expo Wednesday evening where people got to see how the election process is run. They spent time learning about precincts, voting by mail and how to register to vote.
Meanwhile, Gov. Ron DeSantis wants to create the Office of Election Crimes and Security. It would crack down on election and voter fraud statewide.
Last year, two Jacksonville men were charged for using dozens of people’s personal information on voter registration applications.
And in 2020, four people who voted in Central Florida were arrested for voter fraud.
Chambless thinks any efforts to investigate reports of such fraud would be helpful.
“I know there’s some concerns about maybe overreaches or abuse, but I don’t necessarily see that,” he said.
We reached out to the other counties in our viewing area for their thoughts. Duval, Union and Nassau counties’ supervisors of elections think the governor’s proposal is a good idea.
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Putnam County’s supervisor of elections says he doesn’t have enough information about the proposal to say whether he’s for or against it.
And St. Johns County’s supervisor of elections doesn’t think the proposal is a good idea.
As for Chambless:
“It’s important that as citizens we get engaged in the process. Good governance starts here in the elections office and we really want to make sure that people are served,” he added.
To him, voting is vital.