Jenna Buzzacco-Foerster
There are 56 days until Election Day.
Twenty-nine days until the voter registration deadline.
And just 12 days until election officials put the first round of ballots in the mail.
In Florida, where polls show a tight race between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, every vote matters. And with just a few weeks until the deadline to sign up to vote nears, the Clinton campaign has deployed volunteers across the state — including in conservative Southwest Florida — to help turn out the vote come Election Day.
“What you all are doing here is so important. Registering voters is just crucial,” said Anne Holton, wife of Sen. Tim Kaine, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, during a stop in Fort Myers. “This is a time when there’s just so darn much noise on … TV and so much media that I almost think folks tune out a lot of that. What they don’t turn out is the person-to-person contact”
Holton, the former Virginia education secretary, was in Southwest Florida Monday as part of a two-day swing through the Sunshine State. She visited the Florida Democratic Party’s Lee County Office, where she rallied volunteers involved in the organization’s voter registration efforts. She also was scheduled to attend an “Educators for Hillary” event at the Buckingham Community Center.
Voter registration efforts — and later voter turnout — could be key to a Democratic win in November. There were nearly 4.8 million registered Democrats ahead of the 2012 presidential election. That was up from the 4.6 million Democrats registered to vote ahead of that year’s primary.
President Barack Obama won Florida in 2012 by less than 75,000 votes.
State elections records show there were nearly 4.7 million registered Democrats in Florida as of Aug. 1, the deadline to register to vote ahead of the Aug. 30 primary. That number was up from February, when nearly 4.6 million Democrats were registered to vote in Florida.
But Republicans also are seeing gains. Voter registration data compiled by the state showed nearly 4.3 million Republicans were registered to vote by the Feb. 16 deadline to vote in the March presidential preference primary. Records show more than 4.4 million Republicans were registered to vote as of Aug. 1.
And those gains are likely part of the reason why the Clinton campaign is focusing on all areas of the state, including Collier and Lee counties.
Of the 57 campaign offices it opened in the state, two are located in Lee County and one is located in Collier County. It’s unlikely either county will turn blue, but volunteers are hopeful they can do their part to help Clinton win the Sunshine State.
“It’s your turn to empower Democrats,” said Kelsey Martin, a Clinton campaign organizer based out of Fort Myers. “We’re giving voice to our neighbors in Lee County, who might not have ever had a voice in the government before. We are inspiring new Florida residents and citizens alike to help us keep Donald Trump out of the White House.”
While the deadline to register to vote is Oct. 11, some Florida voters will have already cast their ballots. Elections officials must put overseas and military voters’ ballots in the mail by Sept. 24. They can begin mailing ballots to domestic voters on Oct. 4.
“The good news is, you have lots of options on how to vote.” said Holton. “Once you get everyone registered, you have to go out and educate them all about the best way to vote and make sure they know their options.”
