Scott proposes elections changes on CNN but still won’t touch gun policy

Gov. Rick Scott appeared on CNN’s Starting Point with Soledad O’Brien this morning, where he frustrated the morning show host by refusing to give any specifics on policy shifts he could support in the wake of the Newtown, Conn., massacre.

It was in the final four minutes of the seven-minute long interview that the conversation shifted to Newtown. As O’Brien asked Scott to give specifics and the governor avoided providing them, the host expressed her frustration.

Scott said that he feels sympathy for the families affected by the shooting, that he had directed Florida schools to re-evaluate their security plans and that he supports the Second Amendment. But, even when prompted with specific examples, he refused to say which gun proposals me might support and repeated that that policy debate will come later.

“My approach on things like this is to, one, respect the families, mourn their losses, make sure our schools are safe and then start the conversation and then listen to the Floridians,” the governor said. 

O’Brien vented a bit, saying she wanted politicians to say what they’re going to do and take action before there is another tragedy.

“I actually think that I’ve covered enough of them that if we wait until we bump up against the next tragedy -- and there will be one, there’s no doubt about it -- so I guess I would like to hear from elected officials what are you willing to change,” she said.

The interview started out friendly enough, with Scott praising O’Brien for the care she has shown in covering the mass shooting in recent days. Then they talked for several minutes about the long lines in Florida during early voting and on election day and what Scott is doing to fix the problems.

How FL's new provisional ballot rules poured "sand into the gears" of Election Day

TALLAHASSEE -- It’s the most unreliable way to vote, a last resort in which half of the ballots are disqualified.

Created by Congress a decade ago, the provisional ballot was intended as a final attempt to preserve the right to vote for someone whose eligibility is in doubt.

Florida saw a surge in such ballots in 2012 even though turnout was nearly the same as four years ago.

The reason: a much-maligned law approved by Gov. Rick Scott and the 2011 Legislature that, among other things, required anyone moving to a different county to vote provisionally if they didn’t change their address a month before Election Day.

As a result, provisional ballots jumped an average of 25 percent in counties reviewed by the Herald/Times, further taxing elections officials struggling with extra paperwork from a separate rise in absentee ballots.

“It’s like pouring sand into the gears of the machine,” said Ion Sancho, the Leon County supervisor of elections, who had a 56 percent spike in provisional ballots, driven mostly by incoming Florida State University students.

More here

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/12/17/3145753_provisional-ballots-spike-but.html#storylink=addthis#storylink=cpy

Miami-Dade advisory group: Bring back early voting Sunday before Election Day

Miami-Dade County wants more early-voting days — but how many more is up for debate.

Mayor Carlos Gimenez and his appointed elections supervisor, Penelope Townsley, asked the Florida secretary of state earlier this week to consider supporting restoration of 14 voting days, up from the eight days offered this year.

But a county election advisory group agreed Friday to ask state lawmakers for only one more day of early voting: the Sunday before Election Day.

“I’m not sure that you’re going to get 14 days out of the state Legislature,” Gimenez conceded.

The 13-member group was split on what length of time to recommend to county commissioners, who will vote Tuesday on their state legislative priorities for the annual session in Tallahassee next spring.

The county elections department proposed returning to the 14 early-voting days offered before Republican Gov. Rick Scott signed a new law last year that reduced the number of days to eight. The maximum number of hours offered stayed the same on the books, though in practice early voting was extended in 2008.

More here.

Miami-Dade asks Florida secretary of state to let big counties offer more early-voting days, sites

Miami-Dade’s mayor and elections supervisor asked Florida’s secretary of state on Tuesday to relay three requests to Tallahassee to try to fix last month’s elections woes:

Extend the number of early-voting days. Allow early-voting sites to open at locations other than public libraries and city halls. And cap the number of words in state constitutional amendments on the ballot.

Those changes to state law, Mayor Carlos Gimenez and Elections Supervisor Penelope Townsley said, could help prevent some of the embarrassing problems that plagued the Nov. 6 presidential election, in which some Miami-Dade voters waited in line for seven hours and wrangled with a 10- to 12-page ballot.

“We can’t have any more ‘one-size-fits-all’ elections,” Gimenez said.

But will the pleas from the state’s largest county be heard in Florida’s Capitol?

Secretary of State Ken Detzner said he would carry Miami-Dade’s message to Gov. Rick Scott, who tasked the state’s chief elections officer with visiting five problematic counties and drafting recommendations for improvement. Those suggestions, however, would then require the approval of state legislators who wrote the elections laws in the first place.

Separately, Gimenez has convened a local advisory group to make its own recommendations to the county and the state. The group, which is still awaiting the elections department’s after-action report, meets for the second time Friday.

“There are some things that we’re going to need from the state, but a lot of the things that happened can be rectified here in Miami-Dade County,” Gimenez told reporters Tuesday. 

More here.

Crist gave to Obama, Nelson and Patrick Murphy

From the News Service of Florida:

Former Gov. Charlie Crist and his wife, Carole, contributed $13,000 to Democratic candidates during the 2012 election cycle, including contributions to President Obama and U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, state and federal records show.

Crist, a former Republican who became an independent in 2010, drew national headlines when he signed papers Friday night at the White House to become a registered Democrat. The Crists combined to contribute $2,500 to Obama's successful campaign against Republican Mitt Romney and $1,500 to Nelson's successful re-election bid against Republican Connie Mack, the records show.

The Crists sent the largest amount --- $7,000 --- to Democrat Patrick Murphy, who unseated Republican Congressman Allen West in a south Florida district. Charlie Crist also contributed $1,000 to Democrat Lois Frankel, who defeated Republican Adam Hasner in another south Florida congressional district. The former governor also contributed $500 to Democrat Al Lawson, who lost a north Florida congressional race to incumbent Republican Steve Southerland, and $500 to former Democratic lawmaker Dave Aronberg, who was elected state attorney in Palm Beach County. Along with funneling money to Democratic candidates, Charlie Crist also contributed $500 to the merit-retention campaign of Florida Supreme Court Justice R. Fred Lewis, state records show.

DLP vs. RPOF: Another headache for the Grand Old Party in Florida

A Republican is suing the Republican Party of Florida, saying it disenfranchised him and some Republican voters.

On its face, the lawsuit filed last week by former Miami-Dade School Board member Renier Diaz de la Portilla looks like a simple paperwork fight over an obscure party position.

But the underpinnings of the case are much more complicated, involving the byzantine politics of Miami-Dade and the behind-the-scenes battle in Tallahassee for who leads the Florida House in six years.

The lawsuit is also another public-relations headache for the Republican Party of Florida, which would prefer to focus its energies on bigger matters, like promoting Gov. Rick Scott.

But RPOF has no choice. It has to deal with Diaz de la Portilla.

He was elected Aug. 14 as Republican State Executive Committeeman from Miami-Dade. The party, though, refused to seat him. It said he forgot to submit a loyalty oath to the party in Tallahassee.

Diaz de la Portilla said that’s false.

Thousands of rejected absentee ballots in Florida show perils of voting by mail

Absentee ballots are often touted as a pain-free, easy way to cast a vote without having to stand in long lines at a polling station.

But nearly 2,500 Miami-Dade County voters had their absentee ballots rejected this election in what amounts to a wake-up call for those who ignore or fall prey to the perils and pitfalls of not voting in person. Another 2,100 ballots were rejected in Broward County.

Some voters forgot to sign their ballots. The county elections office negated others because the signature on the ballot didn’t match the voter’s on-file John Hancock. And three voters died in between Election Day and the time they sent in their absentee ballots.

Most absentee ballots in Miami-Dade and Broward were rejected because they arrived well after Nov. 6 at the elections office.

Many voters were angry. They cast their mail-in ballots from home for convenience, only to face a greater inconvenience when their vote didn’t count.

“I voted absentee because I realized lines in Miami-Dade County would be horrendous and I didn’t feel I wanted to deal with that hassle,” Patricia Tepedino, a 45-year-old Democratic Obama voter, wrote in an email.

State elections chief will send team to Miami-Dade

Secretary of State Ken Detzner told a Senate committee Tuesday that he plans to dispatch a team of experts to Miami-Dade next week to investigate more fully the "problem" with the recent election, including long lines at the polls and an overwhelming surge of last-minute absentee ballots.

Detzner, who is Gov. Rick Scott's chief elections officer, said Miami-Dade is one of five Florida counties his staff will make fact-finding visits to next week. 

Referring to Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez, Detzner said: "The mayor gets it. He knows what the problem is in Dade County and how to solve the problem."

Testifying before the Senate Ethics and Elections Committee, Detzner said the "problem" could be anything from a lack of early voting sites to a lack of money for office operations.

Detzner said the problem os "underperformance" will also be investigated in Broward, Palm Beach, St. Lucie and Lee counties. He said he would report all of his findings to Gov. Rick Scott in January.

Sen. Miguel Diaz de la Portilla, R-Miami, got Detzner to acknowledge that Miami-Dade Supervisor of Elections Penelope Townsley knew six months before Election Day that the ballot would be one of the longest in Florida's history. "They knew about the 10-page ballot as early as May, right?" he asked. "Yes, sir," Detzner replied.

-- Steve Bousquet

Christian Slater's provisional ballot rejected by Miami-Dade

Actor Christian Slater waited hours in line to vote in Miami-Dade on Election Day -- only to learn his vote didn't count.

Slater on Friday posted a picture on Twitter of his Nov. 26 letter from Miami-Dade County's canvassing board, which addressed him as "Christina Slater," the website BuzzFeed first reported.

"After a thorough review, your provisional bllot was not counted because the signature on the provisional ballot certificate envelope did not match the signature on your voter registration record," according to the letter, which Slater later pulled from Twitter.

Slater had Tweeted about his Election Day-wait as well as his problems casting a ballot.

"Made it in the room only to find out the DMV didn't register me when I got my new license. They asked me if I wanted to reg and I said yes," Slater tweeted on Election Day. "So, now I'm standing by and waiting while this guy tries to get the State on the phone I guess. I really want to vote."

He did, by provisional ballot.

Get ready for more stories like this in Florida. Tens of thousands of provisional ballots were cast in Florida and many of them didn't count.

Provisional ballots are used when a person's voter registration or voting precinct are in doubt. In each of the 67 counties, the provisional ballots are then reviewed by a three-member canvassing board that tries to determine if the vote were legitimately cast before counting it.

Marco Rubio and Paul Ryan to address Jack Kemp Foundation

Who came out better after the 2012 elections: Marco Rubio or Paul Ryan?

The Wisconsin congressman is just publicly emerging from his shellshock loss as part of Mitt Romney's failed presidential campaign.

But Ryan was picked over the Florida Senator for the VP slot, which gave the House budget chairman load of publicity. And just in time, too, he has to grapple with a DC-novela partly of his own making: the "fiscal cliff."

The two will address the foundation named after another one-time Republican vice-presidential candidate, Sen. Jack Kemp. Both Rubio and Ryan have cited Kemp as an influence.

From an email: