I prepared a form 1040-SR for a married couple where the taxpayer died in 2019 and we have an executor named to sign for him, his spouse is still alive and the optimal filing status is married filing joint. I am unable to get the efile forms both fed and state to read properly. The spouses signature line on the federal and state efile forms shows up with "filing as surviving spouse" and the same for the signature box on the tax return the name which should be blank shows "filing as surviving spouse". 

So far the only way to get it blank is to take out the date of death for the taxpayer which then removes the date of death from the top of the 1040-SR.  I'm at my wits end and the Lacerte helpline has been completely useless. Is there anyway to have both the date of death of the taxpayer on top of the return where it belongs and the signature box not to show the spouses name as "filing as surviving spouse" ? 

surivign the signature box on the return the singature box and efile forms to sho