The chads in the "hanging chads" display of ballots used in 2000 are so small they could fit under a closely-trimmed fingernail.
The voting booths used a century ago used a wall of levers for voters to pull when selecting their choices behind a curtain.
Today's booths use electronic touchscreens.
The technology has changed over the years but at the new museum-style exhibit called "Democracy Starts Here" at the Duval County Elections Center on the Northside, the common thread is the voters who selected one candidate over another and put the wheels in motion for shaping the city, state and nation.
Duval CountySupervisor of Elections Jerry Holland was joined Sept. 8 by other elected officials including Mayor Donna Deegan, City Council President Nick
Howland and state Rep. Wyman Duggan for a ribbon-cutting of the museum.
"To build confidence in elections, you've got to have transparency so we want voters to see every part of the process," Holland said.
The exhibition features about 50 items and images honoring election officials, poll workers and voters "as the unsung stewards of democracy."
The exhibit on the hanging chads consists of a clear box that contains the actual ballots used when voters punched out chads to mark their choices in the historic 2000 election between George W. Bush and Al Gore. When voters made a selection on the ballots and the chads didn't completely separate, they became known as hanging chads.
Admission to the museum at One Imeson Park Boulevard is free and does not require purchasing any kind of ticket. It is open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Mondays through Fridays except for holidays through Oct. `16 when election season kicks in at the Election Center. The museum then will reopen after the office completes the work of handling the November election.
The Supervisor of Election also offers behind-the-scenes tours to community groups. To get one of those tours lead by elections staff, go to duvalelections.gov and fill out a community involvement request form.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Take a Jacksonville tour of the place where 'democracy starts'
