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Florida voters who return their absentee bal- lots to a Supervisor of elections offices but forget to sign them will be able to correct the problem, thanks to a recent change in Florida election law, the Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections Office has announced. As of Jan. 1, a voter who forgets to sign the voter certificate on the return mailing enve- lope for an absentee ballot will have until 5 p.m. on the day before an election to cure the unsigned absentee ballot, Supervisor of Elections Kathy Dent said in a news release. To ensure that an unsigned ballot will count, a voter must submit a signed affidavit and proof of identity to the Supervisor of Elections Office, the release continues. Dent said in the release that among acceptable forms of identification are those that contain the vot- er's name and photograph, such as a Florida driver license; a Florida ID; a U.S. passport; a debit or credit card; a military ID; a student ID; a retirement center ID; a neighborhood association ID; or a public assistance ID or identification that shows the voter's name and current residence address, such as a cur- rent utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck or government document. "A voter information card is not a valid ID and cannot be accepted as proof of identifi- cation," Dent added in the release. The signed affidavit and proof of ID may be submitted to the supervisor of elections in person, by mail or by fax or email, the release notes. A copy of the affidavit and complete instructions may be found on the Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections website at SarasotaVotes.com. Dent also reminds voters in the release that their signatures on absentee ballot certificates or affidavits must match their signatures on file in the Supervisor of Elections Office if the ballots are to be counted. A voter may update a signature by submitting a Florida Voter Registration Application to the Supervisor of Elections Office, the release says. Signature updates for use in verifying absentee ballots for the March 25 election must be submitted prior to the start of the absentee ballot can- vass, or by 9 a.m. on Thursday, March 20, the release points out. The Supervisor of Elections office began mail- ing absentee ballots to overseas voters on Feb. 7 and will begin mailing them to domestic vot- ers on Feb. 18, the release adds. To request an absentee ballot, call 861-8618 or email absen- tee@SarasotaVotes.com. A request may also be submitted online at SarasotaVotes.com. NEW LAW OFFERS 'CURE' FOR UNSIGNED ABSENTEE BALLOTS facebook.com/SarasotaNewsLeader Sarasota News Leader February 14, 2014 Page 78