5 Things to Know about Voting in Pinellas County

Snippets from LWVSPA’s latest Voter Services Education Event

By Bonnie Hough

The LWVSPA Voter Services team exists to support voters at all stages of the voting cycle in a nonpartisan manner—from registering, to providing information about candidates and issues that are on the ballot, to helping people understand the voting process and their voting rights.

The Voter Services team held their latest education event on Wednesday, April 20th. About 35 LWVSPA members came together to learn all about voting in Pinellas and what they can do as an individual to help others protect their vote. Amy Keith, LWVSPA Voter Services team co-chair, shared lots of useful information for the crowd. We’ve summarized a few of the biggest takeaways here, so you, too, can be an informed voter and voting advocate for others.

  1. Your #1 source for reliable information is the Supervisor of Election’s Office.

As the entity that runs all elections in Pinellas County, the SOE Office will always have the most reliable and up-to-date information for voting. At the SOE’s office website, you can:

  • Check your voter registration status
  • Track your mail ballot through the entire voting process
  • Find your Election Day polling place
  • Register to vote
  • Sign up to vote by mail
  • And much more!

The SOE is a trusted resource and a credible partner in our election process. You can find them at VotePinellas.com or call them at 727-464-8683!

  • A few mail-in ballot musts!

If you are signed-up to vote by mail, don’t skip this bullet! Here’s what you need to know if you vote by mail:

Don’t forget to sign your ballot envelope! Missing signatures are the #1 reason mail ballots get rejected.

Be sure to mail your ballot 2 weeks before Election Day so that it arrives on time.

You can ALWAYS drop your mail ballot off at one of the SOE Offices, up until 7 pm on Election Day. You are also allowed to drop off immediate family members’ mail ballots and up to two non-family members’ ballots each election.

If you do not have enough time to mail your ballot back and can’t get to the SOE Office, you can bring it to your local polling place on Election Day and poll workers will help you out. Your mail ballot will be discarded and you will cast your vote at the polling place instead.

In January 2023, everyone must submit a new vote-by-mail request if they want to continue voting by mail. This includes people who are currently signed-up to vote by mail!  

  • Address issues should not stop you from making your voice heard!

One of the best moments of the evening came when Amy told the crowd about a tenacious voter who she worked with last election. This voter was having difficulty being allowed to vote because they live at a commercial address (they live onsite at a commercial space that they are responsible for overseeing). As Amy was telling the story, Bethany Peabody jumped up and said, “That was me!” They both shared that after working through the issue together, she did eventually get to cast a regular ballot before Election Day was over!

Beyond the impact that these two and their shared experience clearly had on each other, the story illustrated an important point: address issues should not stop you from making your voice heard. People experiencing homelessness have the right to cast their ballot, and so do you. The most common address issues are usually because the voter moved recently. But if you are registered to vote in the State of Florida, having a new Florida address should not stop you from voting. Should you experience any issues voting related to your address or place of residence leading up to or on election day, reach out to the resources below for support. They will help you find an answer.

And remember….redistricting is happening this year, so your Election Day polling place may change even if your residence hasn’t!

  • There is a nonpartisan resource for learning more about local candidates’ views.

If you are looking for information on WHO to vote for, the LWVSPA Voter Guide always provides information from the candidates themselves – in their own words, unedited! For each local election, the LWVSPA Voter Guide team creates a list of questions about local issues. Each candidate has the opportunity to respond to this questionnaire and have their information included in the Voter Guide. The LWVSPA Voter Guide team never edits the information provided by the candidates. The Voter Guide is free to anyone, regardless of if you are an LWVSPA member or not! You can find the Voter Guide at PinellasVoterGuide.com.

  • If you have trouble voting, there are resources you can reach out to for help.

If you face any problems voting, you can call the nationwide non-partisan Election Protection hotline at 866-OUR VOTE.

Hotlines are available in multiple languages:

  • English: 866-OUR-VOTE
  • Spanish: 888-Ve-Y-Vota
  • Arabic: 844-Yalla-US
  • Asian Languages: 888-API-VOTE (Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Urdu, Hindi, and Bengali)
  • Disability Rights Florida also has a hotline at 800-342-0823

You can also call the Supervisor of Elections Office at 727-464-8683.

Have other questions? LWVSPA offers an extensive FAQ page for any number of voting questions or issues that may arise. You can check it out here.