Updated: SOE’s office confirms that some Gainesville voters received incorrect sample ballots
Updated at 11:20 a.m. on October 28 with response from SOE office
BY JENNIFER CABRERA
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – An unknown number of Gainesville voters have received sample ballots that do not include the City of Gainesville Charter Amendment that would return control of GRU to the City Commission if voters approve the measure and a judge rules in favor of the City after a hearing that is scheduled for December.
After several city residents reached out to Alachua Chronicle, we asked readers to send pictures of their sample ballots and their addresses, and we have verified nine sample ballots that were mailed to voters who live in the city limits.
We sent Supervisor of Elections (SOE) Kim Barton an email yesterday asking whether the referendum is supposed to be on the sample ballots mailed to voters. She sent the question to Director of Communications and Outreach Aaron Klein, who sent the following information:
“For the General Election, we mailed voters their version of the sample ballot according to their precinct’s ballot style. For example, city of High Springs voters received sample ballots with the High Springs municipal contests and referendums, but not the city of Gainesville referendum.
“The aim was to ensure voters were receiving a sample ballot that, to the maximal degree, accurately reflected the ballot they would see in the voting booth. We also used an actual ballot image (without timing marks) so that the sample ballot looked even more like the real ballot. We put content on the margins of the mailer so voters wouldn’t try to vote with the sample ballot.”
After we received pictures of incorrect sample ballots, we sent those voters’ addresses to Klein. He sent the following response the day after this article was published:
“First, we want to emphasize to voters that this does not impact any official ballots, nor does it impact anyone’s eligibility to vote in this election or any particular contest.
“We have identified that on one of the many versions of the sample ballot mailer, we inadvertently left the GRU referendum off that version of the sample ballot mailer.
“Our aim for the sample ballot mailer was to mail voters a sample ballot that, to the maximal degree, accurately reflected the ballot they would see in the voting booth. This was a departure from sample ballot mailers in previous elections, which contained all the contests taking place across Alachua County, regardless of whether the voter who received the mailer was eligible to vote in all of them.
“We are directing voters who would like their complete sample ballot mailer containing all the contests in their precinct to go to VoteAlachua.gov or visit our office during our office hours. We have also emailed the voters who we have an email address on file a link to view their official sample ballot.”
The incorrect sample ballots were sent in the mail; there is no evidence that any voter has been provided an incorrect ballot at a polling place, and voters have told us that the sample ballot they downloaded from the SOE’s website was correct.
This isn’t the first time Barton’s office has sent out erroneous documents to voters. In July 2022, vote-by-mail ballots sent to voters in Precinct 27 were missing the races for Gainesville City Commissioners and Gainesville Mayor and vote-by-mail ballots sent to voters in Precinct 51 erroneously showed a Florida House race. In August 2022, polling places in Newberry and High Springs ran out of Republican ballots.
Barton is currently running for re-election.
The errors on the ballots is incompetence. Should not be tolerated and grounds for removal.
wouldn’t be the first time, already voted for Jenson due to other issues with SOE.
The errors are intentional. The incompetence is used as a smokescreen to excuse any election irregularities.
Similar to the Epstein case where the jail just so happened to put their laziest, most incompetent guards on night duty watching one of the most important prisoners in history.
The “lightning rod” strategy is increasingly used at all levels of government and once you see it you can’t unsee it. Look at some of the seemingly bizarre appointees in the current administration.
Everyone focuses their attention, anger, and blame on the incompetent patsy that is heading the agency, paying no attention to the real crimes going on behind closed doors.
Let’s not forget that Arreola’s roommate/special amigo was hired to run the information systems side of things there, despite having no degree or qualifications.
This is not a mistake. It is intentional. Let’s keep those salaries higher than the president and governor rolling into our city offices. Maybe the woman always bragging about her right to a $300,000 salary will give herself a raise.
It will be interesting to learn if this issue is limited to certain precincts.
After the High Springs and Newberry incidents early voting is the way to go unfortunely. Total incompetency on Barton. Whether she likes it or not. She is in charge and it falls on her.
After my ID and signature is verified they print a ballot in front of me. I was under the impression that was now SOP for ballots. I didn’t realize they have different procedures at different precincts. I haven’t noticed preprinted party specific ballots in a while.
I think it is only the Sample Ballots mailed out. and the actual ballots will be printed based on the voter, and the vote-by-mail ballots sent would have been based on voter. It makes sense for there to have been an issue if they just printed the Sample Ballots based on the Precinct, since I think some Precincts have Voters in and outside the City Limits.
Yeah I agree about the sample ballot issue. I live well within the city limits and mine didn’t have the GRU referendum. I don’t know how widespread it is though.
My comment above was referencing Bears comment and the part of this article that mentioned the precincts running out of actual ballots for republicans a fews years ago. I was just saying I haven’t noticed party-specific pre printed ballots where I vote in many years.
That happened during a primary election: https://alachuachronicle.com/lines-forming-at-precincts-after-running-out-of-republican-ballots/
Yes, sorry for my confusing comment above. I wasn’t very clear at all.
I guess what I am trying to say is that for years my actual ballot has been printed directly in front of me after my ID is verified at the voting precinct for primary and general elections. I did not realize some precincts print ballots on demand on some use preprinted for primaries.
According to the supervisor of elections office all precincts will print ballots on-site going forward. It just took a while to roll it out county wide.
that makes the most sense, not as much waste as there was having ballots for all registered voters at a precinct, or the issue of not having enough supply. it’s good they finally switched to print on demand.
Some of us in the city limits did not get a sample ballot at all. Barton’s office is a complete cluster and she needs to go. It is bad enough they can’t get ballots correct, or they didn’t have enough ballots at certain precincts for specific parties in 2022. Then Barton files suit against a church because workers comp and insurance wasn’t enough for her causing us to lose voting locations that understandably removed themselves as precincts. You can’t make this crap up
Neither my wife nor I received a sample ballot this year.
Sloppiness about ballot content can lead to uninformed voting…amendments and referendums are written by the initiator to present an issue in a favorable light, so it takes research to come to an informed position on a ballot issue.
A surprise referendum, not disclosed on the sample ballot, is one more way that an honest election is undermined. (I’m not making an accusation that this was intentional, but the effect is the same, regardless.)
Accuracy matters both in what the ballot will contain, and also who the voter is. Voter ID is essential, and that ID must verify that the person is a citizen who is registered to vote. Different topic, but one that desperately needs attention at the local, state and national levels across this country.
I voted for Judith Jensen for Supervisor of Elections. She is dedicated to election integrity!
SHE IS FIRED. BYE, BYE KIM A. BARTON, WELCOME JUDITH JENSON. PLEASE BRING IN HONESTY, INTEGRITY AND PURGE THE VOTING ROLLS.
I’m sure the voting booths will contain ActBlue Voter Guide fliers “by mistake” too…
I live in the City of High Springs and not even receive a sample ballot, nor did any of my neighbors. Last election my precinct ran out of Republican ballots. This is simply incompetence and that is why Kim Barton should be voted out of office.
I live in the city limits and did not receive a sample ballot. I did receive the early voting locations postcard.
After the last election with Barton in charge with jail inmates ‘recruited’ to vote by an employee she hired should be enough to give Kim her walking papers. Vote Judith Jensen for Elections Supervisor.
Just another way for them to call it a unfair election so they can oppose the results if not in their favor. I agree Kim Barton needs to go.
Well, this is another reason that I won’t vote this year at all to know nobody. No lol would be trusted in governments field. Both parties ,They’re all corrupted vote or not they don’t do nothing for us. Is a bowl. Crap sorry to say that’s how I felt. I don’t wanna vote because no one can be trusted. even the medias, they cannot be trusted, and don’t put the truth out there🙈😞
https://www.change.org/p/make-law-enforcement-fully-investigate-shots-fired-calls-to-911-dispatch
This woman lost a son a case in which not one government employee or elected officials not one from start to finish did what law, policy & common practices dictate; Deception is fraud, fraud involving government is CORRUPTION.
She, Zee is using her personal incident to say by HER experience that coupled with S.O.E We will NEVER get what taxpayers deserve.
She lost a son, she is at a loss because elected officials didn’t even do what oathe, law and pay guaranteed to be done then and now S.O.E. is now conducting some clandestine half measure of fulfilling that obligation which again tips the scale of justice and the American way.
What i’m sounding off about is the thumbs down she/Zee received. Thumbs down people what say YOU?
What are you trying to say or prove? You’re word salads are worse then Kam and Elmer Fudd.
What are you trying to say? Word salads don’t work.
Wow! it’s hard to believe this was an honest mistake…. sadly you can’t trust govt any longer.
I voted early, and, concerned about the recent issues found with Georgia machines flipping votes on ballots, I politely and pleasantly asked the clerk if there were any way I could see at the point of entry whether the votes that were registered were the votes I intended to cast.
I received a litany of deflections– that’s never been a problem, it’s for your own protection, even these machines don’t have chads like in West Palm Beach– but the short answer is no, you cannot perform the simplest of point-of-contact audits.
So I filled in the bubbles, and there’s at least a 50-50 chance that the votes that were tallied matched the ones I meant to cast. But I’m far from confident.
There was no ballot switch, the incident was made clear that it was the woman herself that marked what she wanted incorrectly. While I agree that there is a lot of nonsense, this is one of those times where misinformation being spread causes unnecessary problems, regardless of political viewpoint.
That’s the counterclaim. But we’ll never know, and that’s the point.
This is not a partisan issue and it disenfranchises both parties and NPAs. We at the Alachua County Republican Party have reported this to our Statewide Election Integrity Support team. As a shameless plug, Judith Jensen is running as republican for Supervisor of Elections against Kim Barton.
Judith is a 2020 election denier, a fact emphasized by her web home page which features full color endorsements at the top by wacko extremists Mike Lindell (My Pillow guy), who was successfully sued for millions for lying about the election, and Ann Vandersteel, a QANON quack who thinks the Jan 6 Congressional committee should be arrested, convicted, and jailed.
We can only assume Ms Jensen is as far gone as these 2 and should be allowed nowhere near our election operation, except to vote.
Mr Marden, are their any normal, sane, and moral people left in leadership positions in your party? They all seem to have joined the lying fat man’s cult and have to at least pretend to believe the unbelievable horse manure he shovels every day.
Anyone can use this link if they see voter fraud: https://florida.protectthevote.com/hc/en-us/requests/new
Barton registered 18 ineligible inmates in 2020, 10 of whom were criminally convicted.
Barton is suing an AA church for tripping on a Saturday delivering “election materials” when the church was closed.
10 churches then opted out as polling precincts.
Now this?!
You mean when for some reason only republican ballots were shorted.
That’s it, the election is now tainted and contaminated! Voter fraud! Stop the steal! Call out the election police! This is a very very serious offense! Let’s put the elections supervisor in the stocks and pillory! Bad bad girl!
They are SAMPLE ballots not REAL ballots you fascist morons. Sample ballots don’t matter. Only the real ones count. Do you understand? Much ado about nothing. I bet if a fascist Republican was the elections supervisor, you all wouldn’t give damn. Even congratulate them on a job well done!
Apparently SOMEONE doesn’t know (or care) that it’s important to research the questions and candidates that appear on the ballot. This is harder to do when the ballot is missing or wrong.
The word “fascist” is not being recommended to use in describing Republicans according to advisors of Camel and Elmer Fudd. They advise it could cost the election for demoncrats. Please adhere to your Soris Death Star commander’s. Tone it down Liberal.
Paulie, she’s running for re-election right now. Why wouldn’t you expect her past and current failures to be brought up? She’s incompetent. That’s what this conversation is about. Not a single person is saying this is some election changing conspiracy. We’re saying she’s an idiot and incompetent.
In a time when people are looking for any excuse to deny the legitimacy of the electoral process, a mistake like this should not occur. Calling a political group facisits is not going to help sway peoples opinions, even if you feel that the figurehead spouts fascist statements.
I voting for Paulie for Pres as a write in candidate!
Kim Barton and 66 other SOEs signed off on this memorandum 3 years ago.
“Florida voters can be confident in the professionals they elected to administer our elections, and the protections that ensure every ballot is counted accurately and only eligible Floridians are on the voter rolls.”
https://www.hernandovotes.gov/Portals/Hernando/FSE%20Message%20to%20Voters%20on%20Election%20Integrity%20-%20final.pdf?ver=MTRG1XzayuPb3qKTbrrNow%3D%3D
This season the weasel words have become exponentially worse. The phrase “voters can be confident” can be technically true no matter what nonsense follows it.
We try and try to vote them out but now I believe the system has been corrupted. It’s time to go back to voting on paper and hand counting.
This is great , Democrat’s against Democrats. Woke losers every day/
I live in east Alachua county, haven’t received any sample ballot. I had to get one online and even that was a pain in the butt. Nothing is easy with this bureaucracy.
Bad as this informational error is, remember that the Republican running for supervisor of elections has an endorsement from prominent 2020 election denier “Mr My Pillow” featured at the top of her home page, as well as QANON podcaster Ann Vandersteel. This is nut job stuff and this woman is a true believer.
Ann Vandersteel reposted on X:
“At Noon On January 20th, With President Trump Behind The Resolute Desk, The Members Of The House Select Committee Investigating January 6th Need To Be Immediately Arrested, And Swiftly Prosecuted For ‘Seditious Conspiracy’.”
This is the woman who’s endorsement Ms Jensen displays prominently, in color, and at the top of her home page. Hers and Mike Lindell’s only, he the 2020 election denier who was successfully sued for millions for lying about it.
Well, Jan 6th Committee tampered with evidence and witnesses, committed perjury and encouraged witnesses to provide false testimony, so jail, after a fair trial outside of DC, would be appropriate.
I’m voting for Jensen now that you pointed that out! ¡Mil gracias!
How about Hilary’s election denying? Does that bother you? Probably not as you don’t seem to have any integrity. Hijo do puta.
Hillary called Trump the night of the election and congratulated him and then showed up at his inauguration. Both things Trump didn’t have the class or balls to do, and then tried to throw out the votes of states he’s now trying to suck up to. The fact that she later justifiably complained about Russian interference encouraged by Trump – a fact confirmed by the GOP majority in the Senate Intel Comm report on the election , not a “hoax” – Comey publicly announcing her continued FBI investigation while not mentioning his, and her popular vote victory of 3 million in no way equals an effort to overturn the vote like that loser traitor.
Smarten up. Your guys a lying selfish quivering baby lacking all principle and character. Hillary’s The Man, he’s the 42B wearing sissy.
Bless Barton’s heart, she is so incompetent…
Were the erroneous sample ballots concentrated in a specific district or area?
The sample ballots that were sent to us were from all over the city, not concentrated in any one neighborhood.
If it isn’t related to location/precinct I’d be curious to see if party affiliation possibly played a role? Would be interesting to cross reference addresses of correct/incorrect sample ballots with the party affiliation of registered voters at each address.
There has to be a common data point that caused this. SEO knows what files were sent to the printer so it can definitely be figured out if they’re transparent.
Our sample is not large enough to draw any conclusions. As you noted, the SOE’s office could give us precise information but chose not to.
Well, Barton is terrible at being fair. At the same time, it was just the invalid and meaningless GRU amendment. This and the At Large measure are a waste of the paper that they are consuming because they both are legally invalid.