Chambless busts election myths

Clay County’s Supervisor of Elections took on some of the most common myths surrounding elections during a presentation to the Keystone Heights Rotary Club on Oct. 5.

Chris Chambliss blamed social media for much of Americans’ mistrust about election integrity.

He urged citizens to take advantage of the transparency in Florida elections by observing the logic and accuracy tests of tabulation equipment, attending the public viewing of sealed, mail-in ballots, witnessing the processing and duplication of mail and Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act ballots and attending canvassing board proceedings.

Myth: Mail-in ballots don’t get counted unless an election is close

Chambless told the civic group that the most common myth surrounding elections is that mail-in ballots don’t get counted unless an election is close.

“The truth of the matter is that they are some of the first ballots to be counted,” he told the Rotarians.

He also said the mail-in ballot results are among the first reported.

When polls close at 7 p.m., it takes some time for precinct workers to transmit election day results to the elections office. However, Florida law requires supervisors of elections to make public the results of mail-in and early voting votes at 7 p.m., so the first results the public sees are votes from mail-in and early voting ballots.

Myth: Election results can get hacked and altered when precincts transmit their results to the elections office

Chambless said this conspiracy theory results from a misunderstanding of the security in transmitting election results and the misconception that results are transmitted using the internet.

He added that precincts send results via a cell signal to the nearest Verizon tower and then to a landline.

“It goes to the (phone company’s) central office, and then it goes to another cell phone tower by my office and then is transmitted from there,” he said. “It never touches the internet.”

“No tabulation system ever is connected to the internet,” he continued. “So, when you hear these stories about Russian hacking— there have been two instances of Russian hacking that’s been qualified. One was in the middle of Florida. One was in Chicago, Illinois.”

Chambless said the hacking incidents compromised voter registration data, which, although important, did not compromise the integrity of an election.

Myth: election results are not audited

Chambless said that because Florida is a paper ballot state, he can recount any election as often as necessary.

“We also have a mandatory audit,” he added, in which each county must randomly select one precinct from one race after each election and compare a hand recount to the tabulated results.

“We also have a logic and accuracy test,” Chambless said. “We now have a new system that independently audits the entire election— every single contest, every single race and every single ballot.”

Myth: Presidential elections are the only ones that matter

“Many people say,” Chambless said, “I only vote in the big one,” meaning presidential elections.

He said that is flawed thinking because although few people have had conversations with the president, many have had discussions with and can influence their local officials.

“Governing starts local,” he said, “and it’s a fallacy for individuals to think that if they only get involved in the big one, they are going to have that hand in their election.”

Chambless said that typically, a general election produces a 66% turnout.

“However, in presidential years,” he said, add 10% to that.”

The elections chief said turnout in a primary normally drops to around 40%, and with no Republican primary for governor this year, the August primary produced a turnout of only 25% in Clay County.

Myth: Cases of voter fraud are not investigated

Chambless said that after each election, he refers around 12 cases of potential voter fraud to the state attorney’s office.

With the newly created Office of Election Crimes and Security under Florida’s Secretary of State, he now has an additional resource to refer suspected fraud cases.

Chambless said many cases of voter fraud result from simple mistakes, like a voter filling out a mail-in ballot, then changing his or her mind and voting in person, and the spouse erroneously mailing in the votes.

Other cases of apparent fraudulent voter registration can occur when a felon believes his or her voting rights have been restored, but an unknown court fine remains unpaid.

Myth: My vote doesn’t make a difference

The real problem with elections, Chambless said, is that only two-thirds of registered voters cast ballots.

He added that overall turnout in the August primary was only 25.3% in Clay County and that a county-wide election costs taxpayers a quarter of a million dollars.

“Do the math,” he said. “If it’s a quarter of a million dollars and only 25% turn out, how much waste is that?”

The supervisor said the county’s cost would be even higher if his office weren’t one of the first in the state to convert to ballot-on-demand.

“We produce the ballot after we validate the voter,” he said. “Therefore, we don’t pre-print 160,000 ballots, which costs 38 cents each, and also costs to destroy the unused ballots after the election.”