[Tallahassee, FL] Kurt Browning, who as secretary of state is Florida’s top elections official, is stepping down for the second time.

Browning, who is well regarded for his understanding of elections laws and process as a former Pasco County supervisor of elections, spoke go Gov. Rick Scott on Wednesday in person and then stepped out of the governor’s office to say he was leaving, but would stay on until Feb. 17, allowing him to oversee the state’s Jan. 31 presidential primary contest.

In a brief meeting with the governor, Browning said he expressed his gratitude for being allowed to serve, but said after five years of running Florida elections, it was time to return to Pasco County, where he still lives with his wife on the weekends.

“It’s stressful every Sunday afternoon when you have to load up the car and head north,” Browning said. “But I’ll tell you, I love the Department of State. I love those people that work down there. They have quite honestly made me look like a rock star.”

Browning leaves at a critical time for the Division of Elections, however, and his replacement will immediately be under a white hot light. The state is enforcing a new elections law that has been challenged by voting rights groups, and which needs federal approval in certain areas to remain enforceable.

The secretary also will have to watch over an unusually short turnaround time, as lawmakers redraw legislative boundaries this year, subject to court approval, that makes for a small window between the time when potential candidates actually know what the state’s political map will look like and the time when ballots must be printed and an election conducted.

And the job of the top elections official in Florida is always closely watched – even though the secretary now is appointed by the governor and no longer an elected official as when secretary of state was a Cabinet post.

Florida is, of course, home of the hanging chad and the near even election in 2000 led to several years of changes in equipment, election law and procedural changes, as the state went to touchscreen voting, and then backed away from it, all while having to implement the federal Help America Vote Act.

So whoever runs the state’s elections department is always under a microscope in an election year, even though much of the actual day-to-day election procedure is run by independently-elected county elections supervisors.

Photo: Governor's Office

Gov. Rick Scott delivering his State of the State speech earlier this week

Unlike many of his predecessors, including former Secretary of State Katherine Harris, Browning brought to the post nearly 30 years of election experience.

Originally appointed to the post by former Gov. Charlie Crist in 2006, Browning resigned in 2010 but was one of Scott’s first appointees following the Nov. 2010 election.

Since then, he has been the target of lawsuits over election laws passed last year that place restrictions on early voting and provisional ballots while making it more difficult for groups to register voters.

“I don’t think he was the same secretary of state that he was under Charlie Crist,” said Ben Wilcox of the League of Women Voters, a critic of the new law.

On Wednesday, Scott applauded Browning for his professionalism and expertise in elections and other aspects of the job.

“Over the last year, Secretary Browning has been instrumental in implementing the new elections law, working with Florida’s … independently elected supervisors of elections to prepare for the state’s presidential primary later this month, and coordinating Florida’s 500th anniversary celebration in 2013,” Scott said.

Browning said he did not recommend nor was he asked to recommend a replacement, saying his brief private meeting with the governor was casual and relaxed as the two chatted about family members. He also said he is confident his departure would have no impact on the integrity of the 2012 Florida elections.

“We’ve put people in place, we’ve put procedures and processes in place to ensure that those elections in August and November will be run and be run well,” Browning said

Browning said he would not rule out a run at Pasco County school superintendent but said his reasons for leaving were strictly personal.

“Certainly it’s an option but it is not the reason I’m going home,” Browning said of a possible run. “As I’ve stated before, it’s to be with my wife, with my family and my community. I’ve served my time and I hope that I will be judged as having served it well.”

By: Michael Peltier/The News Service of Florida

Lead image: Kurt Browning talks to reporters after tendering his resignation to Gov. Scott. By: Michael Peltier

Florida elections