The recent federal court ruling on Amendment 4 may have left you confused. We called the office of the State Attorney 13th Judicial Circuit for clarification.

We are happy to confirm that returning citizens can register to vote, as long as they have completed their sentences and were not convicted of homicide or sexual assault. Unknown fines or the inability to pay outstanding fines or fees should not stop you from registering, based on the latest federal court ruling. If you had a public defender assigned to you, or if your fees were converted to civil judgements, it is assumed that you are unable to pay.

So if you meet these criteria, go ahead and register. You will hear from Tallahassee if your registration is accepted.

Welcome back, citizens. Register to vote here.

If you have additional questions reach out to the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition.

Please note that the DeSantis Administration decision to appeal the ruling does not affect your ability to register now. For more information on the Federal Court’s recent ruling, click here.

1. Check the domain. Fake brands often add “.co” to a trusted source, to hide behind their trustworthy reputation. The site abcnews.com.co is fake.
2. Check snopes.com. Plug in the article’s keywords, like “George Soros”. If it’s a popularly suspected scam, Snopes will find it and label it TRUE or FALSE. Factcheck.org and PolitiFact.com can help too.
3. When you land on a site you don’t know, click the “about” page. Then Google it with the word “fake” and see what turns up.
4. If a story offers links, follow them. There will be a trail of rubbish. No links? That’s a sure sign that this story has nothing to back it up.
5. Lots of pop-ups and banners are a good sign a story is pure clickbait.
6. Photos can also be doctored, out of date, or out of context. Upload a photo to com to see where else it appears online.
7. Google the story and see if it appears in other sources you trust. News doesn’t happen in a vacuum.
8. Is the story in ALL CAPS? Speling errers? Dramatic punctuation???!! Are there obviously photoshopped photos? These are warning signs.
9. Listen to your gut. Does the story trigger a hot button emotion? It was probably designed that way.
10. Still Not sure? DON’T SHARE. Real people are harmed by fake news.

Are you a Democratic Party supporter from a Hispanic community? Do you speak fluent Spanish? We need your help!

Our County’s Spanish-speaking population is thriving and growing. In several parts of the county over fifty percent of communities are from Puerto Rican, Mexican, Cuban, or other Latino cultures.

If we can get the Hispanic vote out, Hillsborough County will be SOLID BLUE…

The vast majority of Americans of Spanish-speaking heritages share our Democratic values, from education and jobs to health care and immigration. These communities are among the most consistently Democratic-voting populations, and yet statistics show they are FAR LESS LIKELY to vote than many other demographics, including women, Caucasians, or African Americans.

Just increasing the vote of registered Democrats of Hispanic background in Hillsborough county from the current voting average of 49 percent to the 70 percent range we see in most other demographics, WOULD MAKE EVERY SEAT IN THE COUNTY SOLIDLY BLUE.

We need to reach our Hispanic voters in their homes and communities and show them that THEIR VOTE MATTERS.

How do we do this?

There are no studies to answer why this demographic votes less often, but we DO know that many Hispanics don’t feel their vote makes a difference. Still others are afraid to go to the polls, having had poor experiences with other government bureaucracies.

We, as Hillsborough County Democrats, need to be a presence in these communities. We need to listen to their concerns and show them the impact their combined voting force could have on this community. We need to knock on doors, table at community rodeos and musical festivals. We need to speak more Spanish, translate our materials into Spanish, and we need a volunteer to help us make this website bilingual!

Nuestro voto ES nuestra VOZ!

Hillsborough County Democrats will be rolling out a campaign in the coming weeks to show our Latino base that THEIR VOTE MATTERS. The campaign “Nuestro voto ES nuestra VOZ” will include tabling at local events, Spanish-language radio promotions, short and impactful social media videos and more.

Sign up here to volunteer, and if you speak Spanish please be sure to tell us.