Janelle Irwin Taylor
Monday is the last day to register to vote to be eligible to cast a ballot in the District 5 Special Election for Tampa City Council.
The deadline applies to individuals who are not already registered to vote in Florida. Those who are already registered can still make changes to their registration — such as updating a name or address on file — anytime before Election Day, on Sept. 9.
Monday is also the start of candidate qualifying in the race, which was scheduled after the unexpected passing of Council member Gwen Henderson in June. Qualifying will run through Friday. Currently, there are 13 candidates filed for the race, though as of 10:30 a.m. Monday, none had yet been listed as qualified.
Beginning at the end of the business day Friday, the Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections will have a full list of candidates qualified for the race on its website.
The race is open only to registered voters in District 5, which includes downtown Tampa, East Tampa and Ybor City, among other surrounding areas. Voters can cast a ballot one of three ways. Voters can request a mail ballot by calling 813-744-5900 or on the Supervisor of Elections website. Ballots will begin being mailed to overseas and absent military voters on Aug. 15, with ballots set to go out to domestic voters on Aug. 18.
Early in-person voting opens Sept. 4 and runs through Sept. 7 at four locations, open 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. each day of the early voting period. The locations will be at the C. Blythe Andrews Jr. Public Library, the Fred B. Karl County Center, the Robert L. Gilder Elections Service Center and the West Tampa Branch Library.
Election Day is Sept. 9, with polls open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. Election Day voters must cast a ballot at their assigned precinct. A precinct finder is available to help voters determine where to vote on Election Day.
