US: US Postal Service investigators yesterday were trying to locate thousands of absentee ballots which should have been delivered to voters in one of Florida's most populous counties, officials said.
The issue evoked memories of the polling problems that bedevilled the Florida election in 2000 and which the state has been trying to address before next Tuesday's presidential election.
Broward deputy supervisor of elections Ms Gisela Salas said 60,000 absentee ballots, accounting for just over 5 per cent of the electorate in the county north of Miami, were sent out between October 7th and 8th to voters who would not be in town on election day.
While some had begun to be delivered, her office had been inundated with calls from anxious voters who still had not received their ballots.
"It's really inexplicable at this point in time and the matter is under investigation by law enforcement," Ms Salas said.
"It was basically our first major drop of the absentee ballots." Ms Salas said postal service officials had assured Broward elections supervisor Ms Brenda Snipes that the ballots had moved out of the post office to which they had been taken by the elections office.
US Postal Service inspector Mr Del Alvarez said it had yet to be determined if the ballots reached the post office.
- (Reuters)