Last week I voted. It was exhilarating, I have never missed an election, including primaries, school boards, and general elections…yet there was something special about this vote. With all the crises that we now face, I felt that my vote would be a vote for stability, for hope, for peace, for unity.
As a Florida voter, I was particularly excited. I have been voting by mail in Florida for 5 years, so I am comfortable with the slightly onerous process of using a secrecy folder, signing the outer folder and affixing 3 stamps to the mailer. I have voted in every primary and every election by mail.
Just a few months ago, I voted in the primary.
Today, I got an email notifying me that my ballot was rejected “because the signature did not match.”
Signatures change for a myriad of reasons. All signatures change over time. But signatures can also be impacted by simple things, body position, the pen, a hurried signature.
I have never had a ballot rejected.
To prove that I am me, I must complete an affidavit and mail it with a copy of my identification to prove that I voted. I have the option of scanning the document and sending it by email. It is not hard, but it is an extra, clearly unnecessary step.
Next, I have to check that they received and accepted the affidavit and that my ballot is NOT labeled provisional. (Since many states do not count provisional ballots.)
The majority of Biden supporters are voting by mail. The majority of Trump supporters are voting in person.
Florida is a Republican State. I am a registered Democrat.
Florida rejected my ballot for the first time in 5 years.
Coincidence? I don’t think so.
Angela Rieck, a Caroline County native, received her PhD in Mathematical Psychology from the University of Maryland and worked as a scientist at Bell Labs, and other high-tech companies in New Jersey before retiring as a corporate executive. Angela and her dogs divide their time between St Michaels and Key West Florida. Her daughter lives and works in New York City.
Laurie says
Wow, just wow. It’s a real thing as we’ve been told – closer scrutiny with an eye toward rejectIng mail-in ballots. Obviously, those of us not voting in person need to mail/drop off our ballots as early as possible to allow for these unexpected “aberrations.” Proof positive. Thank you for sharing your experience. I have never been more careful when filling out a ballot because I knew the “scrutiny” would be heightened in this monumental election.
Angela Rieck says
The signature verification is especially difficult as most of these people are inadequately trained and there are few states with a robust criteria. Since there is very little actual voter fraud, rejecting ballots due to signatures suggests malfeasance. The good news is that Maryland does not reject on signatures. Nevertheless, http://www.iwillvote.com will tell you how to track your ballot to make sure that it was recorded.
Brice Gamber says
Wouldn’t it be easier to vote in Maryland which is decidedly democratic and you could be more comfortable ? Or are you registered in Florida because it has lower taxes ? Just a coincidence I guess
Angela Rieck says
Thank you for asking that, I am sure that other people were wondering the same. I was a Florida resident before I bought a second home in Maryland. Coming from one of the most taxed states in the nation (New Jersey); I have paid more taxes than the vast majority of people. I keep my voter registration in Florida because it is my primary home and, since Florida is a swing state, I believe that my vote is better cast in Florida.
Liz Freedlander says
This is scary. Let us know how it turns out.
The link to my absentee ballot went into my email spam box where I fortunately thought to look for it.
I can’t remember ever feeling so nervous about my vote being counted. I felt compelled to ask the lady at the Board of Elections office if there is a security camera covering the drop box.
Angela Rieck says
Thank you for asking. I am scared as well. I scanned both my passport and Florida driver’s license and sent a copy of them with the signed affidavit that I am who I have been since I started voting in Florida. This extra effort paid off, I called again to verify that my ballot was accepted. But I have since learned that Florida has other measures to make getting your absentee ballot counted more difficult. If you receive multiple ballots (e.g., husband and wife), you MUST NOT mix up the envelopes (which is very hard to do, because they are not marked in any way that allows one to know which is assigned to which ballot). If you do, the ballot will be rejected. But it tells us that tracking our ballots is MUST..in this election, things are not the way that they used to be.
Meg Olmert says
I too am left reduced to “wow!” Thank you so much for this entire stream. I am sorry you had to deal with that pathetic swipe at your integrity.
The complexities involved in successfully casting a mail in vote run completely against the one-stop, push button lifestyle designed to make it so easy for us to part with our money. And signatures? How’s yours looking these days after all those keypad scrawls at the cash register? Thank goodness Maryland isn’t grading our penmanship.
Angela Rieck says
Thank you for your support. I WAS one of those people who said that this wouldn’t happen, not to get caught up in the fear mongering. I was wrong. I hope that those who vote by mail (and want their vote to count) vote early and check it regularly. The Post Office is not our problem, it is partisanship.
Patrice Miller says
Thank you, Angela, for sharing your story. This is a very timely piece and voters need to clearly understand the potential barriers to voting by mail. Did you know that (in Florida) if your household receives multiple ballots (for husband and wife, let’s say) and you put the ballot in the wrong envelope, that ballot will be rejected? There is a bar code which must match. In this crucial election, it is imperative that we – first of all – are informed voters and we ensure that our vote counts.