JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Wednesday marked day three of early voting for much of the First Coast. Voters were promised safety at the polls amid a global pandemic, but we've gotten complaints from some viewers about a lack of social distancing at certain locations.
We saw social distancing outside the Mandarin Branch Library, but Ruth Saunders tells us it was a much different situation inside when she cast her ballot around 1 p.m. Tuesday.
“We were shoulder to shoulder," Saunders said. “The cubicles were right next to each other. You couldn’t even get in to sit down without bumping somebody and then another row behind me was the same way. You couldn’t walk between them if there were two people back to back.”
“We do tell the poll workers inside the polling location we do want them enforcing social distancing and that they are wearing masks," said Robert Phillips, chief elections officer for Duval County.
What should you do if you notice people not social distancing inside polling locations?
“They could address it with the team leader that’s at the polling room," Phillips said. "We just ask they be polite and courteous because the poll workers are trying to enforce the social distancing rules.”
“Everybody was saying, ‘Well, this just doesn’t seem right. It was really crowded, and there was supposed to be more spacing.’ They want us to come out, but I don’t want to get the virus," Saunders said.
First Coast News has gotten complaints about a lack of social distancing inside polling locations at Regency Square Branch Library, University Park Branch Library, Mandarin Branch Library, and the Thrasher-Horne Center.
“This is not right," Saunders said. "We keep telling people social distance, and then you do something so crazy as this.”
Phillips said Duval County doesn't require masks for people voting because it could be considered voter suppression.