New Duval elections supervisor quickly adds early voting sites

RON WORD

Associated Press  19 October 2004

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Gov. Jeb Bush's choice for Duval County's interim election supervisor hit the ground running Tuesday, establishing four new early voting sites for the county's 500,000 registered voters.

Bush named William E. "Bill" Scheu to replace John Stafford, who resigned in ill health.

After an afternoon meeting, Scheu's office said early voting sites would open Saturday at four regional libraries across Jacksonville, including one on the city's northwest side, a predominantly black area.

The county's elections office has been heavily criticized by blacks for its handling of the 2000 presidential election, where 27,000 ballots were mismarked and thrown out because of misleading instructions, and for opening only one early polling station - the legally required site at the elections office downtown - for the Nov. 2 election.

At a noon introductory news conference, Scheu said opening more early voting sites was a priority with Bush, Mayor John Peyton and Secretary of State Glenda Hood.

The single site downtown had attracted about 1,500 voters by midday.

Elsewhere in Florida on Tuesday, early voting drew long lines and a few new problems.

In Palm Beach County, computer glitches, delays and calls for more polling places marked the second day of early voting.

Because some people waited up to four hours to vote, Democratic lawmakers late in the afternoon called on elections supervisor Theresa LePore to add more polling places and to put more voting machines in current locations. Some said the county needs more options in minority and lower-income areas.

"When the early voting law was passed, the thinking was, 'Make it convenient,'" said state Sen. Ron Klein. "It's as simple as having enough equipment and enough locations."

He and state Rep. Irv Slosberg, D-Boca Raton, said they hope to work with LePore to resolve the problems before early voting ends.

The worst delays were in Boca Raton, where poll workers mistakenly unplugged five voting machines and could not restart them Tuesday morning, said Slosberg.

Elections workers did not bring in new machines until after noon and some voters had left because of the delay, he said.

Long lines but no other problems were reported in St. Johns County, which had attracted 700 voters to its three sites.

"They love early voting," elections supervisor Penny Halyburton said in St. Augustine.

In Tampa, Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections Buddy Johnson said he had been surprised by the crowd of 3,800 voters who turned out Monday, the first of 15 days of early voting in Florida.

But the computer glitches that slowed the first-day of voting seemed to have been worked out, he said.

"There are long lines," he said Tuesday. "We will add some machines still, as planned and as needed."

Clyde Collins, chairman of the Duval County Democratic Party, said he thinks Scheu (pronounced Shy) was a good choice to run the election in Jacksonville .

"He has a reputation of being honest and is a man of integrity," Collins said. "It's a big challenge, but I think he'll do a good job."

Campaign finance records show Scheu has been a supporter of Republican candidates, giving $2,000 to U.S. Rep. Ander Crenshaw; $3,000 to former U.S. Rep. Tillie Fowler; $500 to former U.S. Sen. Connie Mack and $1,000 to U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina.

Scheu will serve until the City Council calls a special election to fill Stafford's term, which expires in 2007.

Scheu said he will not be a candidate.