Hold primary as scheduled

By Palm Beach Post Editorial

Thursday, August 19, 2004

During the past few weeks, the Florida Division of Elections has caused plenty of political turbulence with its bumbling and seeming partisanship. In the wake of Hurricane Charley, the state must deal with election problems that have resulted from a real storm. Yet Secretary of State Glenda Hood still seems eager to avoid the issue.

On Monday, Ms. Hood held a conference call with most of the county elections supervisors to assess damage from Charley. The consensus: Voting machines seem fine, but polling places in some counties have been damaged or destroyed. Some absentee ballots that voters had returned might be lost. But Ms. Hood hardly addressed the big question: Will the Aug. 31 primary take place statewide?

The goal, of course, should be to see that it does. That could require the state to help set up temporary polling places in Charlotte and DeSoto counties and provide other assistance in Hardee and Polk counties, all of which were in Charley's path. The state might have to find or supply poll workers, technicians and generators. Complicating matters, the Hardee County supervisor died of a heart attack after Charley blew through. It will be tough, but if so many other government agencies can mobilize quickly and effectively after a disaster, so can the Division of Elections.
 Gov. Bush said holding elections isn't as high a priority for the state as helping with food, shelter and insurance. No, but the idea is to restore as much normalcy as quickly as possible, and that includes voting, as planned.