Supervisor of Elections Lori Scott announced today that in addition to the 992 ballots mailed to Military and Overseas voters last month, today’s mailing to stateside voters brings the overall total to 26,543 mail/absentee ballots requested for the January 31, 2012 Presidential Preference Primary and Cape Canaveral Special Election.

“The law has changed—you no longer have to be absent to vote a mail/absentee ballot,” stated Supervisor of Elections Lori Scott. “Not only are mail/absentee ballots the first ballots verified and counted in every election, you can avoid long lines and vote from the comfort of your home.”

Voters may request a mail ballot in person, by mail, online at www.VoteBrevard.com, or by phone at (321) 633‐2127. The deadline for requesting a ballot to be mailed to you is 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, January 25, 2012. Florida law does not allow forwarding of civilian mail/absentee ballots. Please be sure your mailing address is current with the Elections Office.

Voters must sign the voter’s certificate appearing on the outside of the return Mail/Absentee Ballot envelope. “Wives cannot sign for their husbands, husbands cannot sign for their wives, and parents cannot sign for their children,” Supervisor Scott reminded voters. The signature appearing on the envelope of your returned ballot is compared to your most recent signature on file in the Elections Office. Should you need to update your signature, please complete a new Florida Voter Registration Application, available online at www.VoteBrevard.com.

To protect against identify theft and voter fraud, a secrecy flap has been added to the return mail/ absentee ballot envelope to protect the security of the voter’s signature.

All voted ballots must be returned to the Supervisor of Elections by 7:00 p.m. on Election Day, January 31, 2012. The United States Postal Service will change postage rates effective January 22. Before January 22, 2012 postage will cost 64 cents to return a voted ballot. After January 22, 2012 postage will be 65 cents. Mail/Absentee Ballots may be hand delivered to any of the five Election Offices throughout Brevard County.