SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. — Seminole County Supervisor of Elections Chris Anderson says voter registration cards are being sent to people who cannot vote, and it’s causing confusion among voters.
- Voter registration cards, letter sent to ineligible voters
- One Seminole Co. woman said one was sent to her late daughter
- Get more Seminole County coverage
Between the Center for Voter Information and Voter Participation Center, they sent out over 40,000 voter registration cards in Seminole County.
The problem is with many of the people in which those mailers are addressed are not eligible voters.
“We get the information from vital statistics so these people have been removed, said Anderson. "It is not an issue of these people being added to the voter roll, it's an issue of voter confusion.”
Letters and registration cards have been sent to deceased spouses, children, and even pets. One Seminole County resident lost her daughter 22 years ago, and the letter was sent to a home she never lived in, let alone county.
“I set it aside, and I wasn’t going to make a big deal of it because I thought, well maybe she is on some voter list or something," Virginia Clark said. "But that’s when I decided, enough. I don’t want to see this anymore.”
According to the Seminole County Supervisor of Elections, if these organizations contact his office for a list of eligible voters in his county, he will give them the list for free.
The Voter Participation Center sent a statement to Spectrum News 13 that read, in part: "No state provides a list of citizens who are unregistered to vote, so it’s up to non-partisan civic-engagement groups like ours to reach out to these potential voters. We take our mailing list seriously and are constantly improving it.”
Here is the complete statement from VPC:
“Voter Participation Center’s mail-based programs in Florida have been incredibly successful, and have led to the registration of more than 600,000 Floridians in our organization’s history. During the COVID-19 crisis, and with most Floridians staying at home, VPC’s healthy and safe mail-based voter registration program will enable thousands more Floridians to participate in our democracy in 2020. Please remember that mailings sent by VPC clearly state: “If you have recently updated your registration or are ineligible to vote, please disregard this notice,” and “To check your current voter status or to register online, please visit your state election office’s official website. No state provides a list of citizens who are unregistered to vote, so it’s up to non-partisan civic-engagement groups like ours to reach out to these potential voters. We take our mailing list seriously and are constantly improving it.”