County gets vote of confidence

Broward elections office tests voting machines in advance of next week's first countywide vote under a new elections supervisor.

BY BETH REINHARD

breinhard@herald.com

Three months after she recommended the suspension of Broward Supervisor of Elections Miriam Oliphant, Florida's elections chief on Monday observed a voting machines test and expressed confidence about next week's elections.

Florida Secretary of State Glenda Hood said she was impressed with the progress made by Brenda Snipes, who was appointed by Gov. Jeb Bush to replace Oliphant.

NO CONCERNS

''I don't have any concerns,'' Hood told reporters gathered at the voting equipment warehouse in Fort Lauderdale. ``I believe we are well-positioned and well-prepared not only in Broward...but in every county across the state.''

Florida elections have faced international scrutiny since the contentious 2000 presidential recount prompted the state to ban punch-card ballots. Broward continued to garner attention after a chaotic September 2002 primary and a state investigation into elections office mismanagement. No charges were filed.

The county once again found itself in the national news in January when 134 voters cast ballots with no recorded choice in a special Florida House election. A recount certified Ellyn Bogdanoff's 12-vote win.

The outcome led to calls for a printout of each ballot.

''Having that paper receipt would finally put the issue to rest,'' said Broward Mayor Ilene Lieberman, who served on the vote canvassing board that presided over Monday's trial run. ``It's a check and balance that I think we need.''

LONG HOURS

Snipes said poll workers for the 15 municipal contests and the Democratic presidential primary have been trained to keep an eye out for ''fleeing voters'' who forget to hit the ''vote'' button on the touch-screen machines.

Asked whether she was nervous about the upcoming election, Snipes said, ``I come to work nervous every day. Being a little bit nervous keeps me keyed up. . .We're spending long hours doing a lot of checking and rechecking.''