Dan Smith: “Here’s a little primer, as there’s been so much confusion about “early voting,” generically speaking, in Florida. Any registered voter may request an absentee ballot. A voter need not provide an excuse, and the process of obtaining an absentee ballot isvery accommodating to voters (or their designates). There are deadlines (no later than 5pm on the 6th day before an election) when a voter must request (by mail, phone, fax, or email) his or her ballot to be mailed, and when the Supervisors of Elections must mail them, but this process is becoming automated in some counties. Several county SOEs are actively trying to encourage voters to automatically receive absentee ballots in the mail, and some are even providing pre-paid postage for the returns. Absentee ballots must be returned to the Supervisor of Elections by 7pm on Election Day. But registered voters may also request absentee ballots in person, up to and including on Election Day….”