Thousands of Floridians who are ex-felons are being prevented from voting in the historic 2020 U.S. presidential election because they can’t afford to pay their remaining court fees.
Floridians voted in 2018 that ex-felons should be allowed to vote without a long and politically driven rights restoration process. However, Republican lawmakers have introduced multiple hurdles to keep these voters from the polls.
Amendment 4 allows ex-felons to vote in elections, but the Legislature required all court costs, fines and fees to be paid before they are eligible to cast ballots.
With approximately 24 hours left until polls close, many are still raising awareness to ensure voters are paid up before heading to cast a ballot.
According to Tom Scherberger at the Hillsborough Clerk of Circuit Court, 90% of felons in Florida never pay their fines or fees for a variety of reasons, mainly due to the fact that they cannot afford them or they are unaware.
Angela Judge was one of them. She was arrested in the early 1980s but was not aware she owed court costs until earlier this year. Despite participating in multiple elections, she was unaware of the fees due until she was contacted by the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition alerting her that her fees had been paid.
“I didn’t think I owed anything. The judge released me from supervision early, because I did everything she asked me to do. Why would I owe fees? Low and behold, I did. I owed fees, and I had no idea,” Judge said in an interview.
The Hillsborough Clerk of Circuit Court’s Office teamed up with the coalition to identify previous felons with outstanding balances.
Thanks to this partnership, 1,768 people in Hillsborough County are now eligible voters, amounting to over $2.5 million paid in fines.
“Those people who are now re-engaged in the voting process, we are now catalysts for others around us, pushing them ‘hey you’ve had this right to vote all along, you need to exercise it,’” Judge said.
Judge hopes people who cast their votes on Election Day understand their responsibility to vote for people in the community who don’t have the same opportunities.
“If we want to turn our nation around, if we want to turn the reputation of our nation around, we have to vote,” she added.
Preparations underway for busiest Election Day in a century
Tuesday’s balloting is expected to have the highest voter turnout since 1908.
Craig Latimer, the Hillsborough County supervisor of elections, said that of the 934,000 registered voters, 58% have already voted.
He said that amounts to 90% of all votes cast in 2016.
Even though more than half of all registered voters in Florida have cast their ballots, experts are still expecting large turnouts at polls on Tuesday.
Latimer said Hillsborough County is prepared.
Over the weekend, 250 deputy clerks picked up paperwork, electronic poll books and ballot bags.
In Hillsborough County and many surrounding counties, polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Voters are encouraged to double-check their polling sites’ hours as they may differ from the early voting period. You can find your nearest polling location anywhere in Florida by checking Vote.org.
Trump slashes Florida advertising budget in last weeks, GOP steps in
The Trump campaign has slashed its advertising budget from one of the most crucial battleground states.
In response, the Republican National Committee stepped in last week and bought $4 million in advertisements that are now airing across Florida.
Within the same time period, former Vice President Joe Biden spent nearly $17 million in the Sunshine State.
According to advertising analytics, Biden has spent three times as much money as Trump on advertisements nationwide.
Small-county votes could have large impact in toss-up Florida
Florida’s rural counties will see fewer people at the polls tomorrow, though their votes may be key in deciding this outcome of this election.
There are nearly 3 million registered voters across Tampa Bay, but the numbers between Democrats and Republicans remain close.
Urban areas, such as Pinellas County, have a slight Democratic lead in registered voters, while rural counties, such as Citrus and Highlands, have nearly twice as many Republicans as Democrats.
This gives Republican voters a strong chance to eat up the slim lead Democrats have in Florida’s coastal counties.
Redistricting after the 2020 census gave Republicans even more power after the Supreme Court ruled that gerrymandering along party lines was constitutional.
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