The Sarasota County elections office is warning people about some fraudulent letters that have many county residents questioning if they'll be able to vote this year.
Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections Kathy Dent says these letters have a letterhead similar to her's, and appear to be official. What is troubling is the fact that these letters question the recipient's citizenship status. The letters, which are postmarked from Seattle, state that addressees have 15 days to respond or risk being dropped from voter rolls.
Dent thinks the letters are meant to intimidate people in hopes that they won't vote come election day. She and Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner urge people to call the Voter Fraud Hotline should they receive any suspicious letters questioning their voter eligibility. The number is 1-877-868-3737.
Sarasota's not the only place with this problem.
Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections Deborah Clark urges voters to be aware of any suspicious letters or phone calls they may receive regarding their eligibility to vote.
“We were notified by the Secretary of State that voters in some Florida counties have received fraudulent letters questioning their citizenship status,” Clark said. “These letters look official, but they were not sent by the Supervisor of Elections Office.”
Any voter who receives such a letter is asked to save the envelope and all its contents and call (727) 464-VOTE (8683) immediately to report the fraud.
"We take this issue very seriously,” Clark said. “We will do everything we can to protect our voters from fraudulent activity and ensure the integrity of the election.”
