Vote early or vote later. From the Miami Herald-
Early voting begins Monday for the Jan. 29 Florida primary and property tax referendum.The property tax referendum is important to Floridians, and should be more than adequate cause for voters to cast their ballots over the next two weeks. My family, myself included, won't vote till the 29th. There is no need to vote earlier. My wife and mother-in-law have already settled on who to vote for in the GOP primary. Because of Bill Richardson's withdrawal, I'm on the fence at the moment on the Democratic side. Not that it is likely I'd vote for a Democrat in November. I won't cast a vote for Paul under any scenario. I'm not crazy about Giuliani or Huckabee, though I can't totally rule out voting for either.Early voting is designated by law to begin 15 days before an election. Residents interested in voting early should check with their local elections office for locations.
Voters who don't want to make a trip to the elections office can also request an absentee ballot from their county's supervisor of elections by mail or by phone. The last day to request an absentee ballot is Jan. 23.
The state Legislature moved up its primary last year to Jan. 29 so that it would have more effect, even though Democratic and Republican party rules state it should take place no sooner than Feb. 5. The national parties have punished Florida by stripping the state of all Democratic delegates and half its Republican delegation to the national nominating conventions.
Because Florida is a closed primary state, only Democrats and Republicans can vote in those primaries. But anyone can vote for the state's property tax referendum.
The proposal would double their existing $25,000 homestead exemption for homes valued at more than $50,000 but only for nonschool taxes. It also would let homeowners take their Save Our Homes benefits along with them when they move.
Polls show Florida to be very close at the moment. Didn't similar polls say Hillary Clinton was going to lose by 10 points in New Hampshire last week too? So take these polls with a full shaker of salt.
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Florida, General politics, Polls, Primaries
Comments (1)
"Early voting" is one of th... (Below threshold)1. Posted by Jim Addison | January 14, 2008 4:42 PM | Score: 2 (2 votes cast)
"Early voting" is one of the worst ideas to come to our electoral system.
Now, certainly there is a need for "absentee voting," but the intent of the absentee ballot was to extend the franchise to those who could not be physically present on Election Day - those who might be out of town for school or business, or otherwise unable to make it to the polls that day.
People who could go to the polls, but simply choose to vote early, don't serve themselves or the polity well. Suppose, for example, a scandal breaks just before the election - one which might not involve criminal charges, but would, in the minds of most voters, disqualify a candidate from office. If too many have voted early, they can't take those votes back, and the tainted individual might win anyway.
Two weeks is a very long time in political campaigns.
1. Posted by Jim Addison | January 14, 2008 4:42 PM |
Score: 2 (2 votes cast)
Posted on January 14, 2008 16:42