Voter's Ballot Guide for the Miami-Dade County, Florida 2012 General Election

With all of the amendments to the Florida Constitution and County Questions on the ballot, a lot of people have been asking my opinion on these questions.  Below is my "cheat sheet" for voting in this election in Miami-Dade County.  I hope it will be a helpful guide for people in determining how to vote in this election. Note that this was my ballot in Downtown Miami; other Miami-Dade County voters may have different choices for County Commissioner, etc.

ADAM’S PICKS - The General Election, November 6, 2012

President – OBAMA/BIDEN

Senator – BILL NELSON

Vote YES to retain ALL the judges

County Judge (Group 24) -- WALLACE

Board of County Commissioners (District 5) – GARCIA

 

CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS - VOTE NO ON ALL AMENDMENTS
Most of these items should not be in our Constitution, and they are mostly the result of the State Republican parties efforts. Reject them all.

No. 1 – Health Care Services – NO

This is an attempt to derail the Affordable Care Act in Florida. Reject it.

No. 2 – Veterans Homestead Exemption – NO

This will take millions away from schools and local governments, and will not help the most needy of veterans who are renters and homeless. We can find better ways of helping our needy veterans that does not sacrifice needed revenues for our children and other needy citizens.

No. 3 – State Gov’t Revenue Limitation – NO

This would hamstring government and potentially result in major cuts to important government services.

No. 4 – Property Tax Limitations etc. – NO

 

This would take nearly a billion dollars away from schools and local governments and give it to the wealthiest Floridians.

No. 5 – State Courts – NO

This would interfere with the independence of our judiciary.

No. 6 – Abortion – NO

 

This would further restrict women's ability to get contraceptive care in Florida.

No. 8 – Religious “Freedom” – NO

 

Sounds good on paper, but this amendment is a way for government to fund religious institutions. Vote No to maintain the separation of church and state.

No. 9 – Homestead Exemption – NO

 

This is already Florida law. We do not need a constitutional amendment.

No. 10 – Personal Property Exemption – NO

 

Reject for same reason as #2

No. 11 – Senior Exemption – NO

 

Reject for same reason as #2

No. 12 – Student Body President – NO

This can be done by statute. Inappropriate for the Constitution.

 

SCHOOL BOARD

Bonds – YES

We must invest in our schools to create an educated workforce and improve our economy in the long term.

 

COUNTY QUESTIONS

Commission Term Limits – YES

An important step toward ending careerism and corruption on the Commission.

Technical Amendments to Charter – YES

Urban Development Boundary – YES

 

VERY IMPORTANT TO VOTE YES. Will help ensure we don't have further unnecessary development in the Everglade. South Florida needs to build up, not out.

Creation of New Municipalities – YES

Enforcement of Citizen’s Bill of Rights – NO

Another one with a nice sounding title, but it actually takes away the provision providing for forfeiture of office for violations of the Citizen's Bill of Rights. Let's keep that automatic provision as a check on these violations.
 

Mayoral Vacancy – NO

45 days is plenty of time. We don't need three months of a person running our county government who is not elected by all the citizens.

Mayoral Conflict – NO

This creates more problems than it solves.

Crandon Park – YES

Will keep the Sony-Ericsson tournament in Miami and upkeep a beautiful public resource.

Animal Services – YES

Contracting with Companies Doing Business with State Sponsors of Terrorism -- NO

Another "sounds good on paper", but its a nightmare for businesses. Should be rejected.

Vote Early in Florida!

Today, Sunday October 28, and all this week, polls are open for early voting in Florida. Lines will be shorter and easier during the week, and you can vote at ANY open precinct during early voting. Make Freedom count -- vote early this year. Lets make sure EVERY vote in Florida is counted this year!

Politics, Politics, Politics!

A lot going on in the political world this week... time to give a little abaum perspective.

First off is the special election in newly minted NY Senator Kirsten Gillibrand's seat in the state's 20th district. This is a district whose Republican voter registration outnumbers Democrats by some 75,000 voters. In 2006, Gillibrand was the first Democrat to win the seats in many years, and Obama won the district with 54% of the vote. That said, Democratic newcomer Scott Murphy faced an uphill battle against veteran Republican assemblyman John Tedisco. Murphy, with nearly no political experience, has done a valiant effort of coming from behind, and in the final days leading up to today's special election, he took a narrow lead in the polls. This is all the more remarkable when you consider the amount of resources the Republican party has poured into this race over the last several months. The RNC and NRCC have put a lot of time, money and resources into winning this race. If Murphy wins, it will be a remarkable feat, and even if he loses, as he still might, the fact that it was so close still speaks well of the competitive advantage Democrats enjoy overall in this country, even in areas where Republicans vastly outnumber Democrats. Politico has done a nice job breaking down all the ways this race can be interpreted, but the bottom line is that win or lose, this at best is an indicator of great Democratic strength and at worst is a showing of how strong Democrats are even in District's where they are not electorally favored. At this moment, Murphy and Tedisco are separated by only 65 votes, and it may easily come down to the 5900 absentee ballots yet to be counted. We might even see a recount in this tight race. As one blogger said, "This was a remarkably high-turnout special election, and Scott Murphy's performance already is nothing short of amazing in a district where the GOP enjoys a huge registration edge."

Speaking of close elections, a three judge panel has ruled dealt another setback to Norm Coleman's electoral challenge of Al Franken's narrow victory in the Minnesota Senate Race. Some in the GOP are already calling for "WWIII" if Democrats attempt to seat Franken, and Coleman vows to press on with legal challenges. While an Appeal is certain, Coleman's hopes keep getting dimmer, as we slowly get progressively closer to seating this former SNL funnyman as the 59th Democrat in the Senate.

Third, President Obama (its still so great to type that!) set off for his first European tour today, where he will make several important stops, including a critical meeting of the G20 in London and what has been billed as a major speech to the Muslim world in Turkey. Along the way, we'll have the delightful diversion of watching the First Lady wow the world with her charm and stellar fashion sense - the internet was already buzzing today with talk of her outfit transformation entering and exiting Air Force One. Comparisons to the Kennedy's are being called "inevitable" as this young, energetic couple sets out to repair the damage to America's reputation on the World stage.

Finally, here's a hard hitting ad from the DSCC targeting vulnerable Republican senators up in 2012. Arlen Specter, watch out!