Around 32 million Hispanics.

will be eligible to vote this year, a significant share of the entire U.S. electorate.

Almost a million of these are located in Central Florida,
making the Hispanic bloc in this area a powerful force with the potential to determine electoral outcomes. This potential goes beyond state and local limits, reaching federal grounds. As the largest minority group eligible to vote, the Hispanic bloc also has the power to influence presidential elections.

Want to have a say? Then vote!
Federal, state, and local elections allow you to vote for leaders that address your concerns and represent your community. This is the most effective way to ensure that your voice is heard, and that attention is paid to issues that are relevant to you.

From tax policy and healthcare to urban planning and minimum wage, there are many important decisions that depend on elected leaders. These decisions influence all areas of life and shape our communities.

Having 29 electors in the Electoral College, Florida is a very powerful state
that has potential to swing the results of a presidential election.

Large engagement of the Hispanic voter population in Central Florida can contribute to a favorable election outcome for the community as a whole.

It is also important to know that elections go beyond choosing the next President, as you also get to vote for officials at the state, county, and municipal (city or town) levels. Although the President is clearly an important figure, decisions made by state and local governments are more likely to be related to your daily life. Education, infrastructure, police and fire departments, waste management, public works, and recreation services, among many other things, are all under the umbrella of state and local governments.

Most decisions relevant to small businesses, such as business tax rates, regulations, and subsidies are also taken by these officials. State and local government budgets are large and represent a significant part of the economy. You get to have a say on how that money is used by voting!

Although

32 million Hispanics will be eligible to vote in 2020,
that is just above half of the total U.S. Hispanic population of 60 million. Hispanic communities in Florida and across the country tend to face similar challenges, thus using your vote can also indirectly help those that do not have a voice in these decisions.

Voting is a great way to perform your civic duty and ensure your issues are heard and addressed.
By choosing leaders that represent your concerns and values, you help shape the country in which you, your community, and future generations will live.

State Government

State governments are modeled after the Federal government, with their structure also divided in three branches.

EXECUTIVE

auditors
commissioners

• Implement state laws
• Vetoes state laws
• Issue executive orders to pursue new or revised policies

LEGISLATIVE

Upper House
Senate
Lower House

JUDICIAL

State Supreme Court and lower state courts

• Lower state courts manage legal disputes related to the state
• Supreme Court hears appeals from lower state courts and fixes mistakes made by the latter

State governments have roles and responsibilities that are more relevant to a normal person’s daily life. Planning, funding, and maintaining state roads, designing an effective educational system and curriculum, licensing professions, collecting revenue, and more. State governments also play a more central role in healthcare than the Federal government, both regulating private medicinal practice and conducting public health, while also administering topics such as unemployment compensation and retirement.

They cooperate extensively with local (county and municipal) governments in many areas, such as transportation, water supply, and more. Since one of the main goals of each State government is to ensure the continuous and stable economic growth of their state, policies at this level are especially relevant to conducting business, such as tax regulations, subsidies, and incentives.

County Government
County governments don’t follow the usual three-branch division, but they do have positions responsible for executive, legislative, and judicial tasks.

County governments have the important role of providing state services at a local scale. Some of the key responsibilities of counties are law enforcement, tax collection, road maintenance, localized public health, and more. In some larger metropolitan areas, county governments can assume tasks that usually are the responsibility of municipal governments, such as transportation and sewage. The county government’s tasks are carried out by a set of constitutional officers elected directly by the citizens, as shown above.

The impact of county governments is surely something that impacts everyday life, from specifics about the school system to the sheriff’s role in law enforcement and crime prevention. There are many decisions at the county level that are also relevant to businesses, such as regulations, policies for economic development, and different sets of requirements for licensing.

Municipal Government
Municipal governments are the second and smallest tier of local government (the other one being county), and they’re in charge of towns and cities. Like county governments, municipal governments don’t follow the typical three-branch structure. Simply explained, voters elect a mayor and a city council, which then proceed to appoint a series of directors, chiefs, and other officials to perform the necessary governmental duties.

The importance of municipal governments shouldn’t be overlooked. Most of the things you see, do, and interact with everyday are somehow related to decisions made by this government.

City police and fire departments, garbage collection, sewage systems, community infrastructure (such as neighborhood and small streets), parks and recreational areas, and more are all under the wide umbrella of roles and responsibilities of municipal governments.

All these factors affect not only your everyday life, but they also determine the environment for business in the area.

Municipal leaders can make decisions and take action to foster a thriving environment for businesses by investing and maintaining infrastructure, providing spaces for businesses to develop, and more.

Supervisors of Elections

In essence, each county’s Supervisor of Elections maintains all records related to voter registration. They manage new voter registrations, qualify candidates for county offices, conduct public elections, update registration information, maintain election equipment, and more. It is a very important role that ensures the voting process happens as smoothly as possible.

Your county’s Supervisor of Elections’ webpage can be a great source for registration tips, and county-specific information, such as additional days of early voting and local elections

Online registration is available through www.registertovoteflorida.gov
All you need is a Florida driver license or ID card and the last 4 digits of your Social Security Number for verification purposes. You can also choose between English or Spanish for the page (circled in orange).

Register to vote (or update your registration):
if you’re ready to register, or if you’d like to update your registration, you can click “Register or Update”and proceed to answer the questions.

Register by mail or in person:
online registration is the most convenient method, especially due to COVID-19. However, you can access the necessary forms if you prefer to register by mail. After completing the form, it must be delivered by mail or in person to your county’s Supervisor of Elections’ office, the Florida Division of Elections, a driver license office, or a public library.

Registering with felony status
When registering to vote through the steps outlined before, there’s an eligibility question regarding felony status. It asks voters to affirm that they’re not convicted felons, or that their right to vote has been restored. The Florida Amendment 4, passed in 2018, restores the right to vote to convicted felons after they complete all terms of their sentence (excluding those convicted of murder or sexual offenses). Therefore, someone with a past conviction other than murder or sexual offenses should be able to register following the steps explained in the previous section.

The campaign for this amendment was spearheaded by the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition (FRRC).

Their website offers lots of information that can answer specific questions regarding returning citizens’ voting rights:

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

Registration

Registering to vote is a vital step in this process, as it is necessary to vote in both the primary and general elections. To register and vote you must be a U.S. citizen, 18 years old, and a legal resident of both Florida and of the county you seek to be registered in. You must register at least 29 days before the elections to be able to vote. The deadlines to register for the upcoming primary and general elections are:

Primary Elections Registration Deadline July 20, 2020
General Elections Registration Deadline October 5, 2020

In person

Visit your polling place (assigned based on your address) on election date to cast your vote.
Bring a form of ID with you.

For the Primary Elections,
visit your assigned polling place

on August 18
from 7am to 7pm

By mail

You can request an absentee or vote-by-mail ballot through your county’s Supervisor of Elections website.

The ballot must be received by the Supervisor of Elections office no later than 7pm of the Election Day.

For the Primary Elections
request your ballot online or over the phone

on August 8
by 5pm

Early Voting
If you’d rather cast your vote early, you can do it between

August 8-15
for the primary elections

And October 24-31 for the General Elections.
Unlike on Election Day, you can visit any polling station if you’re voting early. your County Supervisor of Elections might offer extra days for early voting. Check their website for the most updated information.

For the Primary Elections, vote at any of the 18 early voting locations

between August 3 and August 16 (9am – 7pm)