Orange County rolls out historic number of mail-in ballots

Addressing mail-in voter concerns

Supervisors of election across Florida are reassuring voters that there are procedures in place to keep vote-by-mail ballots secure.

ORLANDO, Fla. - The Orange County Supervisor of Elections Office said the request for vote-by-mail has been huge this election season as more people opt to stay away from polls.

On Wednesday, Supervisor Ben Cowles said his office sent its first batch of vote-by-mail ballots -- nearly 236,000 -- a historic number he says.

“This mailing that we’re doing today is the most that we’ve ever done for vote-by-mail in an election,” he said.

The topic of voting by mail got heated during Tuesday night’s presidential debate with president Trump throwing accusations of fraud.

“They’re being sold. They’re being dumped in rivers. This is a horrible thing for our country,” said President Trump.

Supervisor Cowles said it’s important to remember in Florida, voters won’t get a ballot unless they request one.

“So we’re not like other states who are just mailing ballots to every voter in the state. You have to have made a request,” he said.

He said his office has steps in place to make sure every vote is counted.

“We have to follow state law and all counties have procedures and protocols in play to protect the ballots,” he said.

He said voters should make sure to do their part to make sure vote is counted such as mailing it back on time or dropping it off at one of the county’s secure boxes.

Cowles said people can also track their ballots to see if they’re approved or need to be fixed, likely if the person forgot to sign it or the signature didn’t match the one on file.

“Vote by mail environment your signature is your ID and we’re comparing that signature to the signature that we have on record,” he said.

The office is adding extra hours to give people more time to update their information.