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M-D Elections Dept. Bypasses Grand Jury Recommendations

MIAMI (CBSMiami) — The much-maligned Miami-Dade Elections department will bypass the recommendations of a grand jury to improve the security for elections.

Instead, the elections department worked with the software vendor to beef up the system on the back end to make it easier for staff to review ballot requests, according to CBS4 news partner the Miami Herald.

The change will not cost the county any money. If the Elections Department followed the grand jury's plan, it would have cost $843,000 initially and up to $743,000 in recurring costs.

The grand jury recommended that the elections department beef up security on its website by requiring user logins and passwords. This came after the office uncovered thousands of fraudulent requests for absentee ballots.

Townsley's office flagged more than 2,500 online requests before the August 2012 primary election. She says the new system should be in place before next year's midterm elections.

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2013 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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