The 2023 Florida Statutes (including Special Session C)

Title IX
ELECTORS AND ELECTIONS

Chapter 101
VOTING METHODS AND PROCEDURE

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F.S. 101.051

101.051 Electors seeking assistance in casting ballots; oath to be executed; forms to be furnished.—

(1) Any elector applying to vote in any election who requires assistance to vote by reason of blindness, disability, or inability to read or write may request the assistance of two election officials or some other person of the elector’s own choice, other than the elector’s employer, an agent of the employer, or an officer or agent of his or her union, to assist the elector in casting his or her vote. Any such elector, before retiring to the voting booth, may have one of such persons read over to him or her, without suggestion or interference, the titles of the offices to be filled and the candidates therefor and the issues on the ballot. After the elector requests the aid of the two election officials or the person of the elector’s choice, they shall retire to the voting booth for the purpose of casting the elector’s vote according to the elector’s choice.

(2) It is unlawful for any person to be in the voting booth with any elector except as provided in subsection (1). A person at a polling place, a secure ballot intake station location, or an early voting site, or within 150 feet of a secure ballot intake station location or the entrance of a polling place or an early voting site, may not solicit any elector in an effort to provide assistance to vote pursuant to subsection (1). Any person who violates this subsection commits a misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.

(3) Any elector applying to cast a vote-by-mail ballot in the office of the supervisor, in any election, who requires assistance to vote by reason of blindness, disability, or inability to read or write may request the assistance of some person of his or her own choice, other than the elector’s employer, an agent of the employer, or an officer or agent of his or her union, in casting his or her vote-by-mail ballot.

(4) If an elector needs assistance in voting pursuant to the provisions of this section, the clerk or one of the inspectors shall require the elector requesting assistance in voting to take the following oath:

DECLARATION TO SECURE ASSISTANCE

State of Florida

County of

Date

Precinct

I, (Print name) , swear or affirm that I am a registered elector and request assistance from (Print names) in voting at the (name of election) held on (date of election) .

(Signature of voter)

Sworn and subscribed to before me this day of , (year) .

(Signature of Official Administering Oath)

(5) If an elector needing assistance requests that a person other than an election official provide him or her with assistance in voting, the clerk or one of the inspectors shall require the person providing assistance to take the following oath:

DECLARATION TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE

State of Florida

County of

Date

Precinct

I, (Print name) , have been requested by (print name of elector needing assistance) to provide him or her with assistance to vote. I swear or affirm that I am not the employer, an agent of the employer, or an officer or agent of the union of the voter and that I have not solicited this voter at the polling place, secure ballot intake station location, or early voting site or within 150 feet of such locations in an effort to provide assistance.

(Signature of assistor)

Sworn and subscribed to before me this day of , (year) .

(Signature of Official Administering Oath)

(6) The supervisor of elections shall deliver a sufficient number of these forms to each precinct, along with other election paraphernalia.

History.—s. 3, ch. 22018, 1943; s. 5, ch. 26870, 1951; s. 2, ch. 59-446; s. 2, ch. 65-60; s. 1, ch. 65-380; s. 13, ch. 77-175; s. 2, ch. 79-366; s. 31, ch. 84-302; s. 12, ch. 85-226; s. 553, ch. 95-147; s. 8, ch. 99-6; s. 10, ch. 2002-281; s. 26, ch. 2005-277; s. 9, ch. 2006-1; s. 9, ch. 2016-37; s. 16, ch. 2021-11; s. 16, ch. 2022-73.

Note.—Former s. 100.36.

F.S. 101.051 on Google Scholar

F.S. 101.051 on Casetext

Amendments to 101.051

Arrestable Offenses / Crimes under Fla. Stat. 101.051

Level: Degree
Misdemeanor/Felony: First/Second/Third

S101.051 2 - ELECTION LAWS - UNAUTHORIZED PRESENCE IN VOTING BOOTH - M: F

S101.051 2 - ELECTION LAWS - UNLAWFUL SOLICIT ELECTOR AT POLL/VOTE LOCATION - M: F

Annotations, Discussions, Cases:

Cases from cite.case.law:

IN RE RAMIREZ Jr., 575 B.R. 159 (Bankr. S.D. Tex. 2017)

. . . (b) Subject to Section 101.051, the estate of a person who dies intestate vests immediately in the person . . . Estate Code § 101.051. . . . Estate Code § 101.051. . . . Estate Code § 101.051. . . . Estate Code § 101.051. . . .

RESIDENTS AGAINST FLOODING, v. REINVESTMENT ZONE NUMBER SEVENTEEN, CITY OF HOUSTON, TEXAS TIRZ TIRZ, 260 F. Supp. 3d 738 (S.D. Tex. 2017)

. . . Code §§ 101.021, 101.051. In addition governmental immunity is not waived for intentional torts. . . .

DOE, T. W. v. DALLAS INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT,, 194 F. Supp. 3d 551 (N.D. Tex. 2016)

. . . Code § 101.051; Mission Consol. Indep. Sch. Dist. v. Garcia, 253 S.W.3d 653, 655-56 (Tex.2008). . . .

PIERCE, De De v. HEARNE INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT, 600 F. App'x 194 (5th Cir. 2015)

. . . . & Rem.Code §§ 101.001(3)(B), 101.021(1)(A), 101.025, 101.051. . . .

A. W. v. HUMBLE INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT,, 25 F. Supp. 3d 973 (S.D. Tex. 2014)

. . . . & Rem.Code §§ 101.001 and 101.051. . . .

S. N. B. v. PEARLAND INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT,, 120 F. Supp. 3d 620 (S.D. Tex. 2014)

. . . . & Rem.Code §§ 101.001, 101.051. . . .

S. BROWNING, v. SARASOTA ALLIANCE FOR FAIR ELECTIONS, INC. a L., 968 So. 2d 637 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2007)

. . . Section 101.051 outlines the procedures to handle electors’ requests for assistance with ballots. . . .

N. OLLIE, v. PLANO INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT,, 565 F. Supp. 2d 740 (E.D. Tex. 2007)

. . . . §§ 101.021, 101.051; Watson v. Dallas Indep. Sch. Dist., 135 S.W.3d 208, 222 (Tex. App. . . .

TEAGUE C. R. T. a v. TEXAS CITY INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT,, 348 F. Supp. 2d 785 (S.D. Tex. 2004)

. . . . §§ 101.021, 101.051 (Vernon 1997). . . .

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES W. O v. E. HOOD, C., 278 F. Supp. 2d 1345 (M.D. Fla. 2003)

. . . program of direct and secret voting without the third-party assistance that is authorized by Section 101.051 . . . Section 101.051 of the Florida Statutes goes even further and provides visually and manually impaired . . . If Plaintiffs’ claims are successful, the third-party assistance authorized by the VRA and Section 101.051 . . .

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES W. O v. E. HOOD, C., 278 F. Supp. 2d 1337 (M.D. Fla. 2003)

. . . secret vote” provision of Article VI, Section 1 is satisfied by the assistance provided in Section 101.051 . . . evidence that they assert illustrates that the assistance provided to disabled voters under Section 101.051 . . . his colleague was initially prohibited from using his own sighted assistant as permitted by Section 101.051 . . . legislative interpretation of the provision as being satisfied by the assistance provided in Section 101.051 . . . was not available in 1995 or 1999, the last two times that the Florida Legislature amended Section 101.051 . . .

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES W. O v. SMITH, C. D. III, A., 227 F. Supp. 2d 1276 (M.D. Fla. 2002)

. . . Defendants Stafford and Council also assert that Sections 101.051, 101.5606, and 101.28 do not violate . . . In addition, Plaintiffs assert that Sections 101.051, 101.5606, and 101.28, Florida Statutes, violate . . . Section 101.051 was subsequently amended by the Legislature in 1977, see 1977 Fla. . . . Under all versions of Section 101.051, assistance was provided to disabled and illiterate voters. . . . Stat. § 101.051 (1967). . . . .

CLARK, v. LA MARQUE I. S. D. E. Jr. La I. S. D. La I. S. D., 184 F. Supp. 2d 606 (S.D. Tex. 2002)

. . . . & Rem.Code § 101.051 as well as Texas common law. See Jones v. Houston Indep. Sch. . . .

DOE, a v. S S CONSOLIDATED I. S. D., 149 F. Supp. 2d 274 (E.D. Tex. 2001)

. . . Section 101.051 of the Civil Practices and Remedies Code states that: “Except as to motor vehicles, this . . . PRAC. & Rem.Code Ann § 101.051 (Vernon 1997). . . . Texas courts hold that § 101.051 stands for the proposition that the waiver of governmental immunity . . .

WILSON, A v. BEAUMONT INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT, 144 F. Supp. 2d 690 (E.D. Tex. 2001)

. . . Code § 101.051 (“Except as to motor vehicles, [the Tort Claims Act] does not apply to a school district . . .

GEBSER v. LAGO VISTA INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT, 524 U.S. 274 (U.S. 1998)

. . . . § 101.051 (1997), immunizes school districts from tort liability in cases like this one. . . .

RYANS v. GRESHAM,, 6 F. Supp. 2d 595 (E.D. Tex. 1998)

. . . . §§ 101.051, 101.057 (West 1997 & Supp.1998); Jones v. Houston Indep. Sch. . . .

LIBERTY COUNTY OFFICERS ASSOCIATION, v. O. J. STEWART,, 903 F. Supp. 1046 (E.D. Tex. 1995)

. . . Standing to assert a private cause of action for “Union Busting” under the Texas Labor Code section 101.051 . . . such, defendants maintain that plaintiffs have no standing to bring a cause of action under section 101.051 . . . See Tex.Labor Code § 101.051; U.S. CONST., Amend. 1. . . . Tex.Labor Code § 101.051. . . .

L. JONES, v. HOUSTON INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT,, 805 F. Supp. 476 (S.D. Tex. 1991)

. . . . § 101.051 (Vernon 1986) as well as Texas common law. . . .

BURKE, a v. AUSTIN INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT,, 709 F. Supp. 120 (W.D. Tex. 1987)

. . . . & REM.CODE § 101.051 (Vernons 1986). Barr v. Bernhard, 562 S.W.2d 844 (Tex.1978). . . . It appears that the nuisance claim is an attempt to avoid the effect of § 101.051. . . . Braun, 114 S.W.2d at 950; § 101.051. The result is the same for the individual Defendants. . . .

L. ROSENTHAL, Jr. v. E. ESQUINALDO, Jr., 443 So. 2d 281 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1983)

. . . Upon a holding that (1) there was substantial compliance with section 101.051(3), Florida Statutes (1981 . . .

WAKULLA COUNTY ABSENTEE VOTER INTERVENORS J. v. R. FLACK,, 419 So. 2d 1124 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1982)

. . . The controlling statutory language is that appearing in § 101.051, Florida Statutes, as follows: 101.051 . . . apparent assumption of the trial court and the parties to this cause, we conclude from a study of § 101.051 . . . A substantial revision of § 101.051 in 1977 removed its former references to special registration cards . . . have provided for the regulation of that assistance in a manner similar to that set forth in Section 101.051 . . . f an elector appears in person to cast an absentee ballot ...which could easily have been done in § 101.051 . . .