By David Hecht
TAMPA- The University of South Florida (USF) Center for Leadership and Civic Engagement (CLCE) invited Craig Latimer, the Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections to discuss the importance of early voting.
During USF’s Democracy Week, Latimer, a seasoned election official with a wealth of election management expertise, spoke at the CLCE’s ongoing Lunchtime Leadership series on Thursday, Sept. 19.
“If you are registered and you are going to vote, plan your vote,” said Latimer. “Plan your vote so you’re not just waiting until the last minute.”
Latimer emphasized the significance of registering to vote and when to vote, so the student’s votes would count.
“If you wait until Election Day, that’s the last day of voting.” Latimer reminded students.
“Go to that (early voting site) as soon as you can. I don’t want to see you walk into that polling site at 5 o’clock on Tuesday and there is a problem with your registration. Because now you have two hours to straighten it out instead of 2 weeks.” Latimer said.
Halima Shaikh, a USF student, registered at a previous event held by the CLCE. “I still have to vote,” Shaikh said. Shaikh was relieved that she was able to find out that USF was an early voting site to make it easier for her to cast her vote.
On USF’s Tampa Campus, Teco Hall is an early voting site for registered students.
Shaun Harris, CLCE associate director, helped students register to vote and answer questions after the lecture.
“We want students to learn the election process,” Harris said. “We want students to know where to vote and any information they need to know to vote.”
Students can cast early ballots for two weeks, beginning on October 21 and concluding on November 3. During this time, students who wish to vote must show an acceptable form of photo identification. You can visit Hillsboroughcounty.gov and see all the voting sites listed for reference.
“If you are planning to vote early,” Latimer said. “Take somebody with you. Take a friend with you.”