Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday granted limited flexibility under state law to elections supervisors who for months have warned that the coronavirus pandemic will complicate their ability to hold elections in August and November.
In an emergency order that fell well short of granting supervisors the leeway they’d requested months ago , DeSantis gave the state’s 67 local elections officials the ability to begin processing mail ballots earlier than otherwise allowed under Florida law. He also established administrative policies encouraging state employees to work as poll workers in their home counties — potentially alleviating concerns about Election Day staffing shortages — and encouraged officials to create protocols for keeping polling places sanitized and voters socially distanced.
“I find that the strict application of some provisions of the Florida Election Code may prevent, hinder or delay necessary action in coping with the COVID-19 emergency,” DeSantis, a Republican, wrote in the order.
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