Every Last Ounce of Effort !

Unchecked citizen box on registration forms stirs debate
By Dara Kam
Special to The Palm Beach Post

Tuesday, October 05, 2004

TALLAHASSEE — Sen. John Kerry's Florida campaign chairman accused Gov. Jeb Bush and Secretary of State Glenda Hood on Monday of using a "technicality" to instruct elections supervisors to throw out voter registration applications if potential voters did not check off a box stating they are citizens of the United States.

Just hours before the 5 p.m. deadline to register to vote for the Nov. 2 general election, U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek, D-Miami, met with state officials and asked them to "err on the side of democracy" and allow the oath attesting to citizenship and residency, which all voters must sign, to meet the statutory requirement concerning U.S. citizens.

A voter registration application is complete under Florida law if it contains the applicant's name, legal residence address, date of birth, and "an indication that the applicant is a citizen of the United States," as well as an oath of loyalty to the U.S. and Florida constitutions and a signature attesting that all the information on the form is correct. The oath also includes the statement "I am a U.S. citizen."

Dawn Roberts, director of the Division of Elections said she would not consider revising the directive. She said, "That affirmation (the oath) is broader than whether or not you're just a citizen."

But Jon Mills, director of the Center for Governmental Responsibility at the University of Florida College of Law and a Democrat who served as a former Florida House Speaker, said, "That signature certainly would seem to do it. That's not only an indication — it's a sworn oath."