COULD SIMULATION OPTIMIZATION HAVE PREVENTED

In this article, we attempt to simulate the election lines in four central Florida counties in the 2012 presi-dential election. To do this, we estimate the numbers of booths at all locations and the service times using data about poll closing times and numbers of ballot items at all 479 locations. Then, we investigate the relevance of an optimization formulation in which the maximum expected waiting time at all locations is minimized by reapportioning voting booth resources. We solve the formulation using a heuristic from the literature and (tentatively) conclude that, according to our estimates and assumptions, none of the loca-tions would have been expected to close after 9:50 pm if simulation optimization had been applied to al-locate voting booths. Further, our model indicates that, by applying simulation optimization compared with proportion-al allocation, the expected latest poll closing time reduces from approximately 6.8 hours to less than 2.5 hours after closing time.