Voting

The Lee County Supervisor of Elections office is now using BallotTrax to keep voters updated on the status of their vote-by-mail ballots.

In a victory for Gov. Ron DeSantis and Republican legislators, a full federal appeals court Thursday declined to take up a challenge to a 2021 Florida elections law that opponents contend discriminated against Black voters.

Calling the state a “national embarrassment,” a federal lawsuit filed Wednesday accused Gov. Ron DeSantis and other elected officials of failing “to realize the promise” of a 2018 constitutional amendment aimed at restoring voting rights of felons who have completed their sentences.

A federal judge has refused to block two parts of a new Florida elections law that placed restrictions on voter-registration groups, while the state appealed an earlier ruling that said other changes in the law likely are unconstitutional.Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker on Tuesday denied a request by the League of Women Voters of Florida for a preliminary injunction against two parts of the law that the group contends violate First Amendment rights.

Governor Ron DeSantis on Friday announced the appointment of Melissa Blazier as Collier County Supervisor of Elections.

Floridians Protecting Freedom, a newly formed group, will hold a news conference Monday in Tallahassee to begin a campaign to pass a constitutional amendment supporting abortion rights.

Collier County Supervisor of Elections Jennifer Edwards retires mid-term on Friday, April 28 after more than 20 years on the job.

As voters continue to cast their ballots across Southwest Florida, Election officials in Collier and Lee counties are reminding residents to research their polling location before getting in line and to bring along some patience.

Lee County use to have 97 voting sites. Today, the final day to cast a vote in the midterm election, and nearly six weeks after the hurricane, there are just 13 locations. All of them are in predominately white communities. The closest sites to Dunbar are about 50 minutes away by foot.

Polling locations in Lee County have been reduced from 97 to only 13 due to impacts from Hurricane Ian. Lee County Elections officials are urging voters to cast their ballots before November 8 to avoid long wait times.