Politics

Florida may be center stage for this year's election, but its also a largely complicated and interesting place to outsiders during non-election years.

After weekend confusion, a lawsuit and some serious voting miscues in Miami-Dade County on Sunday -- really, it was a mess -- South Florida elections supervisors are redefining "early voting" to allow people to cast ballots today.

What it means is, you'll be able to go to an elections supervisor's office, pick up an absentee ballot, fill it out and then turn it in.

Election monitors from the U. S. Justice Department are on their way to Miami-Dade County to investigate reports of predatory voting "assistance" being offered by pro-Romney operatives to elderly voters in a north county precinct.

The Miami Herald reported this morning the complaints came from U. S. Rep. Frederica Wilson, whose district includes the polling station at North Miami Public Library:

Florida-- including South Florida--could finally be getting the millions of dollars it won in a settlement with big banks over bad mortgages and foreclosures. 

In the past several months about $300 million dollars given to Florida has been locked up in a battle between Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi and the state Legislature. Each party claims that they have the authority to decide how the money is spent.

Florida is ready to vote. Or is it?  Over 3 million Floridians have already voted early in person or by absentee ballot.  Early voting totals continue to be strong in mostly Democratic South Florida.  For many, lines at the polls are long, while still others wait by the mailbox for their absentee ballots.  

Attention, liberal voters: They know who you are. They know where you live.

Data wonks at MoveOn.org have figured out how to identify the progressives among ordinary Democratic voters for an experiment in voter psychology that they believe will turn the election in favor of Obama and all the down-ballot Democrats.

Voting early and by absentee has never been more popular. But for many, lines at the polls are long, while still others wait by the mailbox for their absentee ballots.

We’ll have the latest on the key races, what’s at stake with Florida’s 11 ballot amendments, and a final fact-check from Politifact Florida on the eve of an historic election in which the eyes of the nation are upon Florida, again.

Here at WLRN, we've gotten a report of at least one person was allowed to vote in South Florida because officials did not believe the signature on his ballot was indeed his.

A Broward election official said situations like this could be remedied by a voter simply updating their signature in person at the supervisor of elections office in the county they vote in.

Besides a contentious presidential election, Floridians are also voting on key congressional races this year. 

Among those races is former congressman Alan Grayson's possible return to the U.S. House, as well as Rep. Allen West's, R-Florida, re-election where he faces off newcomer Patrick Murphy.

Right now, Grayson is (very) well positioned to win his race. West has out-raised Murphy by millions of dollars and has an edge in the polls.