TAMPA, Fla. — Right now, in Tampa Bay, your election results are being certified.
The election of not only the president but also candidates for other races on your ballot are not official until county canvassing boards and the state certifies returns.
Friday was the deadline for military and overseas ballots to arrive.
Pinellas County’s canvassing board met early Friday morning to review a handful of those, test voting machines for accuracy and certify their returns. Other counties, including Hillsborough, met late Friday afternoon to certify their returns.
The canvassing board ensures that results are accurate, and all valid ballots are counted. The official certified results are transmitted to the state via a secure electronic portal and a hard copy is sent as well.
“Certification is for everybody to firmly believe with all our hearts, that our elections are fair and accurate in Florida,” Manatee County Supervisor of Elections Mike Bennet said.
Bennett says when he signs his name on the official returns, it is in his words, that he and the canvassing board are ensuring legitimate and accurate results.
“We take it very, very serious. And again, I think that the seriousness comes about, because of a lot of the mistakes that were made in Florida in the past. And I think that we want the people in the state of Florida to know that we did not do this lightly, we are making sure that when we sign our names to it that they can be rest assured it was an honest and fair election,” he said.
All 67 Florida counties must certify their results and submit them to the state by Sunday at noon. On Tuesday, Florida’s Elections Canvassing Commission will meet to certify official returns.
All states must certify their election results by the “safe harbor deadline” of December 8. That is when any election disputes or court challenges of states’ election returns must be resolved.
On December 14, presidential electors will meet in their respective states to cast their votes for president. Florida’s 29 presidential electors will meet in Tallahassee.
On January 6, Congress will meet to count and certify the country’s electoral votes.
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