Chairman Jay Zembower's Letter to Seminole County Citizens

Citizens of Seminole County,

As we enter another election season it is my desire to ensure transparency and integrity in the election process. As a member of the County Canvassing Board, it’s paramount to me that every vote counts, and I will be performing my duties to the best of my ability on your behalf through this election season.

The election process is a cornerstone of our great country. We all must have trust and confidence in the election process. Transparency is the single most important aspect to ensure confidence with our citizens and one which I do not take lightly.

Therefore, it is incumbent upon me to share what knowledge I have relating to a concern raised a few days ago regarding mail ballots. On July 29, 2024, I was contacted regarding a voter that had received a mail ballot on or about July 18, 2024 and then received a second mail ballot on or about July 28, 2024.

This voter has indicated they reached out to the office of the Supervisor of Elections for guidance because there was no letter, note, or explanation accompanying the second ballot. This voter indicated that they were advised the second ballot was a replacement for the first one because a disclaimer was omitted notifying voters to vote both sides of page. I was asked to look at both ballots and I observed that both had the same disclaimer in English and in Spanish. This voter has indicated concern over this situation because it appears that the explanation afforded was not accurate. I agreed. 

The following day, it became apparent to me this story was gaining traction in the community. I asked the County Attorney to review the ballots and envelopes, as well as to interact with the voter to get the voter answers. Likewise, I learned other County Commissioners were hearing similar stories. I drafted an email to my colleagues to inform them I had met with the County Attorney and County Manager on this topic and had requested they post on the County website and in information kiosks the contact information for the office of the Supervisor of Elections and the Secretary of State for citizens to contact with questions or inquires related to the election process. Often citizens are unaware that the County and the County Commission have no authority over the election process, which is operated by the Supervisor of Elections as an independent Constitutional Officer with oversight by the Florida Secretary of State.

On August 1, 2024, I called the office of the Supervisor of Elections at 9:21am to attempt to get an answer to this concern. After waiting for a lengthy automated phone system algorithm, I ultimately left a message for Supervisor Anderson to call me. Late in the morning I phoned again and was able to reach an employee to inquire about this issue. The employee indicated yes; they were aware of the situation regarding the disclaimer not being on the ballots. The employee explained that the occurrence was concentrated in the Casselberry area and that it affected a handful of voters but was unable to quantify an actual number.

At 1:13pm the County received a press release emailed from the office of the Supervisor of Elections indicating that an error was caught in collaboration with a vendor and that it has been addressed. I contacted the Supervisor’s office, to inquire as to the scope of the error to learn how many ballots were affected and which vendor was responsible. I was ultimately passed to Supervisor Anderson.

Further explaining this is not uncommon as voters often change political parties, which requires that a different ballot be provided, or that the voter request a second ballot, indicating this was the reason this event occurred. He stated that it impacted maybe one percent of the ballots or maybe a total of three ballots. He further assured me that only one ballot per voter would be counted. I questioned the press release which indicated an error had been caught in collaboration with the vendor and that did not sound like a voter error, to which he responded that it was not. Again, this was inconsistent with what I was told earlier by the Supervisor’s employee.

A few minutes after we spoke, Supervisor Anderson called me back and further explained that often it’s voters that no longer live here and are not eligible to vote, as his office scrubs the voter lists. Given all the different explanations I was provided, I’m not confident the answer I received is consistent with the Supervisor’s press release. I remain uncertain as to the real reason. It seems it would be as easy as contacting the vendor to see what list was sent versus what errors were discovered, and perhaps corrected by the Supervisor or the vendor. This, I trust, is a question for the Secretary of State and the Division of Elections, which maintain certain oversight over local Supervisors of Elections.

In these times of mistrust in the election process, it is paramount to me that the great citizens of Seminole County are confident that voting is safe and secure. We as citizens must be able to rely upon and trust the system, or our great nation will suffer further.

For questions regarding any concerns or inquiries, I urge you to contact the office of the Supervisor of the Elections at 407-585-8683, or the Florida Secretary of State voter assistance hotline at 866-308-6739.