This reminder is for the woke among us who nonchalantly talk national politics at the bar and then casually defuse increasingly heated conversations by saying, “Well, the elections that really matter are the local ones.”
Election day for Tampa’s municipal election (read: mayor, city council, and amendments to revise the city charter) is on March 5. Early voting starts on February 25, but the deadline to register is February 4.
Deciding who and what to vote for is the hard part, but double-checking your voter registration status is easy to do online (do you know your last name, date of birth and house number?).
New voters may also register online (Florida driver’s license or Florida ID and the last four digits of your social security number re required) or at their Supervisor of Elections office, driver’s license office, public library, armed forces recruitment offices and more.
What’s also cool is that on January 8, the Voting Restoration Amendment (AKA Amendment Four) went into effect, restoring the voting rights of Floridians with felony convictions after they’ve complete all terms of their sentence including parole and probation. The amendment, however, does not apply to those convicted of murder or sexual offenses.
What are you waiting for?
This article appears in Jan 31 – Feb 7, 2019.