Voting

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.

Here's what you need to know ahead of the 2022 general election for the Florida Supreme Court, appointed judges, and appeals court judges.

A website launched by the League of Women Voters provides detailed, nonpartisan information voters may need to compare candidates, review voting procedures, and understand ballot initiatives.

Governor Ron DeSantis has issued an executive order to allow election rules changes in Lee, Charlotte and Sarasota Counties. The changes could make it easier for displaced voters to get mail-in ballots.

Based on 2020 U.S. Census data, as many as 1 in 4 eligible Americans are not registered to vote. That’s according to NationalVoterRegistrationday.org. The website also says millions of Americans every year find themselves unable to vote because they miss a registration deadline, don’t update their registration, or aren’t sure how to register.The solution is an annual, national nonpartisan civic holiday to educate and encourage eligible voters to register. This year, National Voter Registration Day falls on September 20. The day includes online and in person events across the country to register voters ahead of the hotly contested midterm elections.

The Collier County Supervisor of Elections office is challenging local high school students to register and pre-register to vote ahead of the 2022 General Election.

People in the 18-29 age range tend to have the lowest voting rates in the nation. Southwest Florida officials, and even young people themselves, say that probably will not change in this November's election.

Engage Miami, an organization promoting youth civic engagement, has received nearly $400,000 worth of grant funding from the Southern Poverty Law Center to expand voter outreach efforts.