Page 3 - Florida Sentinel 9-18-18

Local
23,000 Registered Voters Don’t Vote In Mid-Term Elections
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
One of the things Ms. Yvette Lewis does as Presi- dent of the Hillsborough County Branch of the NAACP is research. And research is especially important at this time, because she is trying to reach those who are not reg- istered to vote.
She is also trying to get people who are registered to go to the polls and cast bal- lots. In a recent conversation with the Sentinel, Ms. Lewis said, “I have found that people will vote in the Presidential elections, but they will not return and vote in the mid-term elections.
“Research has shown me that there are 23,000 regis- tered voters who don’t vote during mid-term elections in Hillsborough County. I want to get those people to go to the polls.”
Beginning last weekend,
MS. YVETE LEWIS President, Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections
members of the NAACP will be joined by members of other organizations as they canvass neighborhoods throughout Hillsborough County. Their goal is to regis- ter those who are not regis- tered and encourage those who are registered to go to the polls.
On Wednesday, the NAACP will launch a phone bank in hopes of reaching some of the 23,000 voters by
telephone. “We are going to reach out to them and ask them to vote.”
She further said volun- teers will visit nursing homes to register voters and many more volunteers are needed.
The NAACP is also work- ing with Sheriff Chad Chronister with the Hills- borough County Sheriff’s Of- fice.
“Sheriff Chronister
has agreed to work with us to get those who are in jail and who have not been convicted of a felony to register to vote. There will be a monitor avail- able for the inmates that will be monitored,” she said.
Currently, there are 846,003 registered voters in Hillsborough County. How- ever, a spokesperson for the Hillsborough County Super- visor of Elections Office said 219,739 people voted in the Primary Election, which is equivalent to 26% of the reg- istered voters in the county.
Organizations To Donate 1,000 Backpacks For Students
Two organizations have joined forces to donate 1,000 backpacks. Tom’s of Maine have teamed up with the Kids in Need Foundation (KINF) to make the donation possible.
The event will take place on Thursday, September 20th. The “Backpacks Full of Good,” are earmarked for the students most in need. They include essential school sup- plies and a personalized “Good Luck Letter,” that will be distributed to local area
teachers. The teachers will then distribute them to stu- dents at various schools in Hillsborough County.
The Teaching Tools for Hillsborough Schools is a local KINF Resource Center.
The initiative is part of a larger Tom’s of Maine “Back- packs Full of Good” Program. The organization plans to give away a total of 10,000 back- packs in 10 selected cities na- tionwide during the month of September.
Circuit Court Judicial Vacancy
The Thirteenth Circuit Ju- dicial Nominating Commis- sion announces a vacancy on the Circuit Court of the Thir- teenth Circuit in and for Hills- borough County, created by the resignation of the Honor- able Claudia Rickert Isom.
The Commission is now accepting applications for the circuit court judge position. Applicants must be residents of Hillsborough County, regis- tered voters, and members of The Florida Bar for the past five years.
Applications can be down- loaded from The Florida Bar’s website at www.florid- abar.org by going to “Direc-
tories” at the bottom of the home page and clicking on “Judicial Nominating Com- mission.”
Applicants will be asked to provide their names, ad- dresses, telephone and fax numbers, and email addresses to facilitate communication with the commission.
Applicants must submit a fully completed original and one copy of the application, along with a photograph at- tached to the original and to the copy, to Gilbert M. Singer, Marcadis Singer, P. A., 5104 South Westshore Boulevard, Tampa, FL 33611, no later than 5 p. m. on Sep- tember 25, 2018.
TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2018 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 3