Accessible Voting — Sebastian, Florida

Sebastian voters with disabilities can use an accessible ballot marking device at every Indian River County polling place, bring a helper or ask two poll workers, and in care facilities vote with a supervised team.

All of it runs through the Indian River County Supervisor of Elections, not City Hall on Main Street. The office's Voters with Disabilities page sets out the core promise: a voter who needs help because of blindness, disability, or inability to read or write may vote on an accessible marking device at the polls and may receive personal assistance, whether voting by mail, during early voting or on Election Day. The same page states that the voter does not have to disclose the nature or extent of the disability.

The supervisor's office is at 4375 43rd Avenue in Vero Beach, open Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM, with a main line of (772) 226-4700, according to the same page. Requests that must be made ahead of time, such as an accessible mail ballot or supervised voting at a Sebastian care facility, go to that office.

Indian River County, which runs Sebastian's elections, describes its ES&S ExpressVote touch screen as a universal voting system for voters of all abilities; it prints the voter's selections on a card that is then inserted into the DS200 scanner.

The Indian River County voting system page describes three machines. On the ES&S DS200 precinct scanner and tabulator, a Sebastian voter marks the paper ballot issued by a poll worker and then inserts it into the scanner; the DS300 is an upgraded version of the DS200 that, from a voter's perspective, operates exactly like it. The third machine is the one built for access. The ExpressVote Universal Voting System utilizes touch-screen technology that produces a paper-based record for tabulation, and the county states that it allows all voters, regardless of abilities, to make their selections privately and autonomously.

The county's ExpressVote instructions, which Sebastian voters can read before an election, are short. The voter inserts the vote session activator card received at check-in, touches the box with each candidate's name, reviews the selections on screen, prints the card and then inserts it into the scanner. The county page lists two display aids: contrast options that change the screen to high contrast black and white, and a zoom function that makes the text appear larger.

State law sets the floor for what such a machine must do. Section 101.56062, Florida Statutes requires every voting system certified in Florida to support accessible voter interface devices that provide a tactile input or audio input device, or both, with audio output so voters can confirm their input. Where visual perception is required, election officials must be able to set the font size from a minimum of 14 points to a maximum of 24 points; the statute also requires controls operable with one hand, including operability with a closed fist, and a force no greater than 5 pounds to operate them. The statute requires at least one such accessible voter interface device in each polling place, which includes every Sebastian precinct site.

A Sebastian voter who needs help may choose two poll workers or any other person, except an employer, an agent of the employer, or an officer or agent of the voter's union.

The rule is Section 101.051, Florida Statutes. An elector who requires assistance 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, subject to the employer and union exclusion. Before entering the booth, the voter may have one of those helpers read the offices, candidates and issues aloud without suggestion or interference. For a Sebastian voter, that reading can cover every office and issue on the ballot.

Paperwork at a Sebastian precinct is short. According to the Supervisor of Elections, a voter whose registration record does not already carry a note asking for help at the polls fills out a declaration stating that help is needed, and the clerk at the polling place can help with the form. A helper who is not election staff signs a separate declaration. The statute's version of that oath has the helper swear that he or she is not the voter's employer or union agent and did not solicit the voter at the polling place.

The statute also bars recruiting. A person at a polling place or early voting site, or within 150 feet of its entrance, may not solicit any elector in an effort to provide assistance, a rule that covers the sidewalk outside the North County Public Library on Sebastian Boulevard as much as any other Indian River County site.

Early voting in the Sebastian City Hall Council Chambers works the same way. The county's early voting page tells voters who need assistance in marking the ballot to inform the poll worker, and its Election Day page repeats that instruction for the regular polling places.

Yes, Florida law requires every polling place used by Sebastian precincts to be accessible and usable by people with disabilities, from parking to the voting area.

Section 101.715, Florida Statutes states that all polling places must be accessible and usable by people with disabilities, and that only sites complying with the Florida Americans With Disabilities Accessibility Implementation Act may be used, regardless of the age or function of the building. The Indian River County Supervisor of Elections adds the federal law alongside it: the Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act of 1984.

The statute lists minimum standards for every site Sebastian voters use. Where voters park, there must be one or more signed accessible parking spaces. There must be signage identifying an accessible path of travel if it differs from the main entrance, an unobstructed path of travel, level, firm, stable and slip-resistant surfaces, an unobstructed area for voting, and sufficient lighting along the path and inside the room.

In Sebastian those standards apply to a mix of buildings. The county precinct directory lists the North County Public Library at 1001 Sebastian Blvd, the Sebastian Community Center at 1805 N Central Ave, Sebastian Church of God at 281 Delaware Ave, Sebastian Elks Lodge No. 2714 at 731 S Fleming St and Sebastian Christian Church at 190 Day Dr. Churches and a lodge hall are held to the same entrance, parking and floor standards as the public library.

Residents of Sebastian assisted living facilities and nursing homes can vote with a supervised voting team, and voters at home can ask the Indian River County Elections Office for an ADA accessible mail ballot.

Supervised voting is set by Section 101.655, Florida Statutes. The supervisor of elections of a county shall provide supervised voting for absent electors residing in any assisted living facility or nursing home facility at the request of the administrator. The written request from a Sebastian facility is due no later than 28 days prior to the election, and if it names fewer than five voters the Indian River County supervisor is not required to provide the service. Each team has at least two people and, except in a primary where only one party has candidates on the ballot, must include representatives of more than one political party. No candidate may serve on a team. Team members may assist a resident under the same oath used at the polls, or the resident may choose another helper.

The Supervisor of Elections states that a Sebastian resident in such a facility can also simply receive a vote-by-mail ballot there. For voters at home, the county's vote-by-mail page gives two numbers for an ADA Accessible Ballot: 772-226-4702 or 772-226-4718. The same page notes that a voter must personally vote his or her own ballot unless assistance is required due to blindness, disability, or inability to read or write, and that a power of attorney cannot sign for a voter.

For the November 3, 2026 general election, the Sebastian early voting site in the City Hall Council Chambers at 1225 Main Street is open October 19 through October 31, from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm, and to 6:00 pm on Thursdays, according to the county early voting page. Like every Indian River County early voting site, it has an accessible ballot marking device, according to the Supervisor of Elections. Last verified: October 11, 2026, on the Indian River County Supervisor of Elections website, voters with disabilities page.