Misleading? Maybe. Illegal? Probably, but the Board of Elections can't do anything about it.
Signs reading "Republicans Vote Here" are planted outside some early voting sites in Jacksonville, leading Democrats to complain that they imply only Republicans can cast ballots there, not the general public.
That's not true. Democrats can vote at the same sites.
Asked whether the signs could be misleading, Donovan Bradley, county executive director for the GOP, said: "It is the job of the Republican Party of Duval County to encourage Republican voters to cast their ballot and make their voice heard. We want all Republicans to vote in the ongoing special election."
Early voting is open in the run-off election between Republican Nick Howland and Tracye Polson to fill a vacant at-large seat on the Jacksonville City Council.
According to Bradley, the signs were paid for and approved by the county Republican Party and were not affiliated with Howland or any committees affiliated with him.
Shown pictures of the signs near various polling sites, elections supervisor Mike Hogan said they weren't illegal under his office's guidelines, as they were not within 150 feet of polling site entrances.
"My office has no authority or jurisdiction over the message or the placement of signs in public beyond the 150 foot No Solicitation Zone," he said.
Hogan did note, however, that both parties often place signs illegally in the public right of way in violation of city ordinance. That's the case at the Pablo Creek early voting site, where the "Republicans Vote Here" signs stand next to signs for Polson.
Medians between the sidewalk and street fall into the public right of way, meaning signs placed there should be removed by law.
"Anyone can call the Code Enforcement Office of the City of Jacksonville, (904) 255-8211, and make their complaint," Hogan said. "They have the power to police these signs — my office does not."
