Lake County Supervisor of Elections calls out groups he says lied to voters

LAKE COUNTY, Fla. — The Lake County Supervisor of Elections slammed two organizations, he said sent false information to thousands of voters.

“They should be ashamed of their scurrilous conduct and apologize to the voters,” said Lake County’s Supervisor of Elections Alan Hayes.

During Tuesday’s press conference, Hayes unloaded on a pair of groups circulating what he said are blatant and disgraceful lies about the upcoming election.

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The issue at hand is an email that was sent out by Florida4America.org, a group working with the Republican Party of Lake County in association with an outside group.

The email is filled with incorrect information about voting, voting by mail and the process for requesting a ballot.

The email alleges that ballots were mailed out to people who didn’t ask for them.

Read: Lake County officials: Emails sent encouraging voters NOT to vote by mail cause confusion

On Tuesday, Hayes, who is a Republican, addressed the email, calling it half-truths and outright lies.

“Ladies and gentlemen, this irresponsible dissemination of false information otherwise known as lies is not constructive in any way whatsoever,” Hayes said. “Not one ballot has been mailed to any voter in Lake County who did not request that ballot.”

Vote by mail requests filed in 2020 is valid until the end of this year.

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The email ignores this and tells people to demand their vote by mail ballot be destroyed if they vote in person.

That’s not what happens, since an unused, surrendered ballot must still be accounted for; even though it is not counted.

“I will not stand by while individuals or organizations erode the confidence for the reputation after this office,” Hayes said.

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Channel 9 has learned that these groups are affiliated with the Lake County Republican Party but not directly run by the party.

The head of the Florida Republican Party told Channel 9 that he is proud of the security measures put in place to protect the vote in Florida and encourages residents to vote by mail, calling the system safe and secure.

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