Gen-Z Voting Guide

Find out what’s on the ballot this year and become a first-time voter!

By: William Levy

Credit: Time

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Where to Vote

Do you go to the University of Florida? Have you been to the J. Wayne Reitz Union? Great! Between Oct. 21 and Nov. 3, you can cast an early voting ballot right there. All you need is some valid form of identification, such as a driver’s license, a passport or a physical student ID. The voting station is open from 9:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M., and I know you will definitely be in the area. Ask the Career Connections Center desk to guide you to the station.

Early voting means you don’t have to wait in a long line on what is likely going to be a busy Tuesday, which might discourage you from going through with your vote. It also means that, should an emergency come up, you still have the following day to plan accordingly. The process will take no more than fifteen minutes so cast an early ballot at the Reitz Union by Nov. 3.

For students who haven’t yet updated their voter registration to match their Gainesville residence: you can still do so at the Reitz. Inform a poll watcher about your situation and they’ll change your information in person so you can cast a ballot. Make sure to have some proof of residence (like a lease agreement) just in case.

If you choose to vote on Election Day (Nov. 5), that’s great too. The Reitz Union will be open at the same hours. Get there as early as possible, have your identification ready and get that I Voted sticker.

Amendments on the Ballot

Florida voters, there are six constitutional amendments on the ballot this year, and it’s imperative that you understand what a yes/no vote means on each.

Amendment 1 is seeking for members of district school boards to be elected in a partisan, rather than a nonpartisan, election. A yes on Amendment 1 means that political parties can nominate their own candidates for district school boards. A no on Amendment 1 means that district school board elections remain nonpartisan, where candidates cannot run under or with a political party.

Amendment 2 is seeking to establish a state constitutional right to hunt and fish. A yes on Amendment 2 means hunting and fishing become a state right, and therefore is harder to ban or restrict through laws. A no on Amendment 2 means that restrictions remain easier to pass, usually done so for wildlife conservation purposes.

Amendment 3 is seeking to legalize the recreational use of marijuana for adults 21 and older. A yes on Amendment 3 would allow marijuana to be consumed recreationally, as well as cultivated for sale by individuals with a state license. A no on Amendment 3 will keep marijuana as only legal to consume with a medical card.

Amendment 4 seeks to ensure a right to abortion. A yes on Amendment 4 legalizes abortions before 24 weeks or beyond only if deemed necessary for the safety of the mother. A no on Amendment 4 keeps the current abortion law, which restricts them to within the first six weeks of pregnancy.

Amendment 5 is seeking to require an annual adjustment for inflation to whatever the current homestead tax exemption is at the time. A yes on Amendment 5 means homeowners would pay less on their taxes. A no on Amendment 5 means taxes on homeowners will rise as their property value rises with inflation.

Amendment 6 is seeking to repeal public campaign financing, which comes from taxpayer money. A yes on Amendment 6 means that candidates will have to walk into campaigns with previous wealth or raise money through other means. A no on Amendment 6 will maintain that candidates receive public financing with agreed-upon campaign spending limits.

Candidates for President and their Policy Platforms

I will briefly outline the platforms of the presidential candidates and the Florida candidates for the U.S. Senate. Kamala Harris is the Democratic candidate for President. Donald Trump is the Republican candidate for President. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell is the Democratic candidate for Senate. Rick Scott is the Republican candidate for Senate.

On Voting:

Harris wants to make voting more accessible. This includes passing the John Lewis Voting Rights and Freedom to Vote Acts which would ensure voting rights protections and expand vote-by-mail along with early voting. She believes this will encourage young people to vote.

Trump wants to make voting requirements stricter. This includes the dominating of same-day voting (over early voting), strictly maintaining voter identification, and requiring proof of citizenship to vote. He believes this will make elections more secure.

Mucarsel-Powell wants to make voting more accessible. She also supports the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and wants to require independent, nonpartisan redistricting.

Scott wants to make voting requirements stricter. He wants to eliminate same-day voter registration, ban campus early-voting sites, and enforce stricter national requirements for registration, voter identification and mail-in ballots.

On Minimum Wage:

Harris supports raising the national minimum wage to $15.

Trump has threatened to veto a $15 federal minimum wage and prefers it to be decided by the states.

Mucarsel-Powell supports raising the national minimum wage to $15.

Scott opposes a federal $15 minimum wage and has opposed raising Florida’s state minimum, which is $13.

On the Border:

Harris wants to secure the border. As vice president, she supported the bipartisan border security bill, which sought to expand drug-intercepting technology.

Trump wants to secure the border. He wants to expand border security and expand on the U.S. wall project with Mexico.

Mucarsel-Powell wants to secure the border. She supports increasing border security and has backed a bill to provide funding to border protection.

Scott wants to secure the border. He wants to refocus the military on lethal defense against immigration.

On Gun Control:

Harris wants stricter gun control. As vice president, she oversaw policies to expand background checks and tighten regulations on gun shows. She plans to further fund law enforcement training and gun violence prevention programs to these ends.

Trump wants looser gun control. He plans to roll back the gun restrictions of the Biden administration. As president, he reversed background checks placed by the Obama administration and has threatened to veto the enhancement of background checks if passed by Congress.

Mucarsel-Powell wants stricter gun control. She is advocating for increasing firearm safety programs and plans to expand background checks.

Scott wants mostly looser gun control. He opposes raising the age to own semi-automatic firearms, but he also supports red-flag laws to remove firearms from those deemed a threat.

On The Economy:

Harris wants to emphasize support for middle-class families. This includes  tax relief on first-time homebuyers and federal investment in small businesses. As vice president, she was the tie-breaking vote on the expansion of the Child Tax Credit.

Trump wants to place an emphasis on helping the working class. This includes increasing tariffs on foreign goods to promote domestic manufacturing and removing taxes on tips. He is also seeking to establish the Trump Tax Cuts and Jobs Act as well as further expanding the Child Tax Credit. He has stated lowering inflation to be a priority.

Mucarsel-Powell wants to support middle-class families. This includes lowering homeowners insurance and establishing renter protections. She wants to restrict hedge funds from creating competition with individual buyers in the home market.

Scott wants to emphasize workers in his policies. This includes relocating federal spending from relief projects to labor investment, as well as shifting governmental roles into the private sector. He is also seeking regulations on foreign goods to promote domestic manufacturing.

On the Environment:

Harris wants to tighten environmental regulations. As vice president, she was the tie-breaking vote in passing the Inflation Reduction Act to lower household energy costs. She plans to continue tackling household energy costs and holding corporations responsible for high pollution levels accountable.

Trump wants to loosen environmental regulations. As president, he weakened or ended more than 125 environmental protections and plans to further reverse policies and regulations put forth by the Biden administration. He believes these regulations are stunting economic growth.

Mucarsel-Powell wants to tighten environmental regulations. She plans to increase federal funding to restore the Everglades and relocate funds towards green infrastructure.

Scott stands neutral on environmental regulations. He voted to roll back an EPA emissions rule and cut the budgets of environmental agencies in Florida. He has also helped secure and increase Everglades funding and supports other environmental investments.

On Immigration:

Harris has a mostly strict stance on immigration. She plans to reintroduce the border security bill, which includes an earned pathway to citizenship. She has called for the tightening of asylum restrictions and harsher criminal punishments for illegal crossers.

Trump has a strict stance on immigration. He plans to increase penalties for overstayed visas and invoke the Aliens Enemies Act, the Travel Ban and Title 42 expulsions to expand the deportation of illegal immigrants.

Mucarsel-Powell has a mostly loose stance on immigration. She believes the legal pathway for immigrants must be improved and has pushed back against anti-immigrant rhetoric as inciting violence and hatred. 

Scott has a strict stance on immigration. He wants to remove immigrant eligibility from collecting unemployment benefits or welfare for the first seven years after arriving in the U.S. He also wants to decrease federal funding from sanctuary cities.

On Abortion:

Harris wants to expand abortion to the federal level. As vice president, she overturned the Planned Parenthood federal funding ban. She has stated she would sign a federal abortion rights bill if passed by Congress.

Trump wants to leave abortion to the states. As president, he appointed the three Supreme Court Justices who overturned Roe v. Wade. He has also expressed his opposition to late term abortions.

Mucarsel-Powell wants to guarantee abortion rights in Florida. She has expressed support for the Amendment 4 ballot measure to legalize abortions before 24 weeks.

Scott wants to maintain the current abortion rights in Florida. He opposes the ballot measure to legalize abortions before 24 weeks and voted for a national 20-week ban.

Conclusion

Remember, your vote is yours! Consider everything you know now about the amendments and candidates’ platforms, and come to the conclusion you feel is best, whichever one that may be. Even if you don’t lean strongly towards any candidate, the amendments will still affect the way Florida will operate, so go vote!

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William Levy is a second-year Political Science major at the University of Florida. He is an online writer for Rowdy and on the DEI team for Swamp Records. He frequently argues with people on social media.