Lawsuit Tries to Save Ballot Images

The secretary of state and 15 elections supervisors are being sued in U.S. District Court in Tallahassee allegedly to make sure they preserve digital ballot images created by voting machines during the Nov. 6 elections. Preserving those images are required by law.

“As a result of defendants’ failure to comply with federal and state law requiring the preservation of all election materials for 22 months, digital ballot images used for tabulating votes and possible post-election adjudication are in the process of being destroyed and overwritten following the November 6, 2018 general election for federal offices in Florida,” said the lawsuit. 

It was filed by eight voters in Pinellas, Seminole, Sarasota, Citrus, Volusia and Broward counties and is part of a flurry of cases filed in recent days as recounts continue in the races for U.S. Senate, governor, agriculture commissioner and three legislative seats. 

In addition to Secretary of State Ken Detzner, the defendants in the case are Maria Matthews, the director of the state Division of Elections; and supervisors in Pinellas, Seminole, Citrus, Brevard, Clay, Lake, St. Johns, Duval, Lee, Martin, Hillsborough, Orange, Pasco, St. Lucie and Monroe counties. According to an online docket, the defendants had not filed a response to the lawsuit by Wednesday evening.