Being homeless or having lost your home through foreclosure does not prevent you from voting, said Dr. Brenda C. Snipes, Supervisor of Elections for Broward County.
With the nation's third-highest foreclosure rate, many Floridians have addresses that do not match their voter registrations. Among large metropolitan areas, South Florida led the nation with the highest number of foreclosure filings - more than 59,064 homes in distress - for the third quarter of 2010. This is a 24 percent increase from the previous quarter, and a 9 percent jump from the same period in 2009.
Led by a large increase in bank repossessions, South Florida's foreclosure rate ranked 7th nationwide, with one out of every 41 homes in some stage of foreclosure. Many in foreclosure have wondered whether or where they can vote in next Tuesday's elections.
Voting in the general election is possible as long as the person was properly registered prior to the Oct. 4 deadline. Before or after the deadline, or through foreclosure or any reason whatsoever, it does not matter that your home address changed. You can still vote.
There are two ways to ensure your right to vote: (1) Update your address in advance with the Supervisor of Elections; or (2) Update your address at an early voting site or polling place on Election Day.
"If you are registered to vote, it doesn't matter if you have been foreclosed upon or are homeless," Snipes stated Thursday while appearing on The Credit Report with Bill Lewis. "In fact, the Supervisor of Elections has a special precinct devoted strictly to servicing the homeless population of Broward County."
Name changes through marriage or divorce must also be done in writing, Snipes said. They can be processed through the Supervisor of Elections office.
If a voter has moved from a different county within Florida, a written change is required. As long as an individual can be verified through the statewide system, an address change can be processed at an early voting site or polling place on Election Day.
Registered voters must go to the polling place that covers their new address. Those arriving at an old location will be redirected. If it's close to the 7 p.m. closing time and you do not timely arrive at the new location, you will not be able to vote.
Although a driver's license or state identification card are the best forms of identification to present when voting, any form of picture ID containing a signature will suffice, Snipes said. Picture identification is used to match the voter's photo and signature, not the address.
For more information on registration and polling locations, visit http://www.browardsoe.org or call the Supervisor of Elections at (954) 357-7050.
Source: The Plantation Journal - http://www.plantationjournal.com. To review Bill Lewis' entire consumer protection series, please visit http://www.williamlewis.us
William E. Lewis Jr., is a credit repair expert with Credit Restoration Consultants and host of "The Credit Report with Bill Lewis" on AM 1470 WWNN, a daily forum for business and financial news, politics, economic trends, and cutting edge issues.
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