Independent Party of Florida no longer an option for voters

The Independent Party of Florida’s party status has been canceled after failing to comply with public audit requirements.

That means 262,000 voters around the state will soon get a notice from their local supervisor of elections office telling them they are no longer registered as a member of the Independent Party.

Nearly 13,000 Duval County voters recently got a letter in the mail saying their party doesn’t exist anymore.

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“This is a fantastically unbelievable bureaucratic boondoggle,” said Independent Party of Florida Chairman Ernest Bach.

The Department of State revoked the party’s status after it refused to get an audit from a certified public accountant, instead submitting an audit from a bookkeeper.

“Well for one thing, the certified public accountants that we had contacted in our area and by telephone in other areas all wanted $2,000, $2,500 all the way up to $5,000,” said Bach.

Bach said using a bookkeeper in the past has cost the party $50 for about an hour of work.

Voters who were registered as members of the Independent Party have been automatically changed to No Party Affiliation.

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Those voters can choose a new party by filling out an application.

Bach calls the process a waste of tax dollars, a concern Action News Jax brought to Duval County Supervisor of Elections Mike Hogan.

“There is a cost to mail, obviously. But you can’t hammer us on informing the public, that’s just crazy,” said Hogan.

There are now eight registered political parties in Florida, including the Independence Party, which is different from the Independent Party.

Bach has already applied to re-register the Independent Party of Florida.

The state is still considering it.

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