Election day is only 43 days away. If you're planning to vote by mail, there's a chance your ballot could get rejected, according to a study done by Daniel Smith, the chairman of the political science department at the University of Florida.
Action News Jax reporter Courtney Cole spoke to the supervisor of elections in St. Johns County about the steps you can take to make sure your vote counts.
More and more people are choosing to vote by mail in Florida, including in St. Johns County.
Supervisor of Elections Vicky Oakes told Action News Jax that in August, there were just 16,157 votes cast by mail.
In the November 2016 primary election, there were 27,976 votes cast by mail.
Oakes said she believes more people use the mail-in ballots because of convenience. "Florida is a ‘no excuse’ state. Anyone can vote by mail if you're a registered voter. And if you'd like a ballot, all you have to do is ask for them. We mail them all over the world,” said Oakes.
A study by the University of Florida found that, in the past two presidential elections, mail-in ballots were 10 times more likely to be rejected.
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The reasons include mail-in ballots that were sent back without a signature or with a signature that did not match the voter's signature on file.
“One of my staff members actually looks at the signature on the envelope and compares it to the signature in the voter file,” said Oakes.
If you forget to sign your ballot before putting it in the mail, the supervisor of elections will send you a form called the Ballot Cure Affidavit, which gives voters the chance to correct the problem and ultimately have their vote counted.
Of the 16,157 mail-in ballots from St. Johns County voters in the August 2018 election, 68 were rejected. Of the 27,976 mail-in ballots from St. Johns County voters in the November 2016 election, 47 were rejected.
“With a vote-by-mail ballot, your signature is your identification, because Florida has voter ID laws. When you vote in person, you show your identification. When you vote by mail, your signature is your identification,” Oakes told Action News Jax.
Oakes said her office does everything it can to make the process an easy one, including giving you the option to keep up with the status of your mail-in ballot by visiting www.votesjc.com or by calling (904)-823-2238.
To increase the accuracy of votes counted, the supervisor of elections also regularly keeps track of voters who have died or been convicted of a felony.