JACKSONVILLE, Fla — Election Day is Tuesday and if you have any questions about your eligibility, the leaders of civic organizations want to make sure you ask and don't just stay home.
Last week Governor Ron DeSantis announced the first arrests made by the state's new elections police unit. Seventeen Floridians, mostly in South Florida and Hillsborough County, are charged with voter fraud in 2020. DeSantis says they had been convicted of murder or sex crimes, thus losing the right to vote.
"There will be more arrests to come," Florida Department of Law Enforcement Commissioner Mark Glass said Thursday at the press conference.
Amendment 4 restored voting rights to ex-felons except for those convicted of murder or sex crimes. Then Senate Bill 7066 required all fines and case fees be paid before voting rights would be restored.
President of Jacksonville's League of Women Voters, Lanelle Phillmon, doesn't want confusion with this or anything else to stop people from voting.
"We have legal advisors, pro bono legal advisors, that folks can reach out to if they're not sure about whether or not they meet the eligibility criteria to register to vote or if they've already registered and now they're not quite sure after hearing that press conference," Phillmon said.
The arrests are the first big move by the state's new election police unit, the Office of Election Crimes and Security. The office was created to investigate voter fraud and election law violations.
The League of Women Voters in Jacksonville pushed DeSantis to join the Electronic Registration Information Center, or ERIC, which prevents people from voting in two states or for someone who died.
"We did find the timing of the governor's press conference during early voting, we found that to be a little sensitive to what's going on," Phillmon said. "We definitely don't want to scare people. But again, that's why we want to make sure that people who may now be a little unsure, we want to make sure that they contact the league."
According to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, no one has been arrested in Jacksonville. More than 11 million Floridians voted in the 2020 election.
Ask someone at the League of Women Voters your question by calling 407-710-5496 or emailing canivote@lwvfl.org.