“To encourage citizen ownership of transparent, participatory democracy.”
~ The Creekside Declaration
At this incredibly dangerous moment for the future of our democracy, we at FFEC believe it is imperative that we publicly assert our commitment to two basic principles:
Renowned for its election monitoring in dangerous situations across the world, the Carter Center sent its team of experts this year to monitor the audit of the 2020 presidential election in its founders’ home state of Georgia. Preliminary findings from the Center give the state high marks for its efforts, particularly given the difficult circumstances. Read their preliminary findings here.
As most Americans turn their attention to what the election of Joe Biden means for them and the country, we at FFEC will begin the hard post-Election Day work required to understand this election so that we can improve those in the future. As always, our goal is to improve the fairness, accuracy, security, transparency, and accessibility of our elections.
(Oct. 26, 2020) Ion Sancho, who served 28 years as Leon County supervisor of elections, has warned his colleagues not to connect their voting systems to the internet or face the possibility of being vulnerable to cyberattacks. (Read Sancho’s letter.)
More than 40 Florida counties, including the 8 largest counties in the state, use wireless modems to transmit results on election night. But top computer security experts say the modems, which use Verizon, Sprint, or other 4G technology, are vulnerable to hacking.
If you have signed up for poll watching or if you want to set up an election monitoring program in your area, check out our sample toolkit.
Florida voters have to decide how they want to vote this year. See these fact sheets to learn about precautions in place for voting safely in-person at early voting or on Election Day and how to vote by mail so that your vote will be counted.
Up-to-Date Vote by Mail and Early Voting Statistics, 2020 General Election, Florida Division of Elections
Up-to-Date Detailed Early Voting Data for Florida Counties for Download, 2020 General Election, Florida Division of Elections
Florida Statutes, Title IX, Electors and Elections
Validate the Vote –Participate in a poll tape verification project
Democracy Counts –Download App to help verify election results in your area
Vote 411—Access voting information, the League of Women Voters Education Fund
Volusia County Elections—Access information about voting in Volusia County, contact numbers, trace your vote-by-mail ballot, see early voting locations and hours, and find your precinct for Election Day.
(Miami, FL) Six Florida voters representing different areas of the state have filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking to stop Florida county supervisors of elections from unlawfully destroying key election materials.
The election materials known as ‘ballot images’ are the records created by digital voting equipment used in all but three of Florida’s sixty-seven counties. Ballot images are essential materials because they produce the actual vote counts. A federal law first passed during the civil rights era requires that all election materials and records be preserved and maintained for at least 22 months following a federal election. The law makes no exceptions. State law mirrors the federal law. Read full press release here.
For more than 15 years, FFEC has promoted fair, transparent, and accurate elections in Florida. This year, more than ever, we are dedicated to helping Florida voters cut through the confusion and get accurate, unbiased information so that they can make informed decisions about these and other issues. To safeguard their votes, we will be helping citizens monitor the process here locally in Volusia County, where we are based. After the election, we will be using election data to investigate how well our voting systems and electoral processes worked.
To access our work on the 2016 elections, click here.
Florida Fair Elections Coalition is a nonpartisan, nonprofit grassroots organization that serves the public good as an election watchdog, educational and research group, and advocate for fair, transparent, accessible, secure, and verifiable elections throughout Florida. Since our founding in DeLand, Florida, in November 2004, we have expanded to include partnerships with other election integrity and civil rights groups at the local, state, and national level.
