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The Polls Are Closed

Posted Jan 29, 2008 by Emily Seawell

Updated Jan 29, 2008 at 07:04 PM

As of 7 p.m., polls are officially closed in Florida.

Join Tribune reporter William March tonight for ongoing coverage of the results of today’s election in his March On Politics blog.

Goodnight.

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3 Identical Homes, 3 Different Tax Bills

Posted Jan 29, 2008 by Carlos Moncada

Updated Jan 29, 2008 at 05:10 PM

Homeowner David Ball, 39, only has to look on either side of him to see the clear disparities created by the Save Our Homes property tax cap.

“On my block, the guy next door pays half of what I pay,” he said. “And the other guy next to me is a rental place, so he’s at full [taxes]. You’ve got three identical homes in the same block receiving the same services getting three different tax bills. That’s not fair.”

And that’s why he voted against Amendment 1 this afternoon at a Clearwater precinct.

“It doesn’t fix the problem. It makes it worse,” said Ball, a calibration technician still in his powder blue work shirt, which has a “Dave” name patch.

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Romney Camp, Media Swarm St. Pete

Posted Jan 29, 2008 by Krista Klaus

Updated Jan 29, 2008 at 04:42 PM

Satellite trucks from all over the country have descended on St. Petersburg this afternoon for a front-row seat in the fight for the Republican presidential nomination.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney is holding what he hopes will be a celebration party tonight at the Mirror Lake Lyceum, a historic building that was once a church in downtown St. Pete.

At last check, the polls show Romney in a statistical dead heat with former U.S. Sen. John McCain of Arizona.

Romney is holding his Florida election night party here in the Tampa Bay area, in part because this is one of his strongholds in the state, according to the most recent Mason-Dixon poll.

Statewide, however, the race is a statistical dead heat, with Romney holding a one-point lead over McCain. It is unclear how Gov. Charlie Crist’s endorsement of McCain will translate in the primary.

The party gets underway here at 7:30 p.m. There’s no word yet on when Romney will make an appearance.

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Turned Away Part 2

Posted Jan 29, 2008 by Neil Johnson

Updated Jan 29, 2008 at 03:55 PM

This was to have been 18-year-old Sara Hurst’s first election.

But the University of South Florida freshman living on campus for the first time found out she had to vote in the precinct near her parents’ home in Lutz.

That was too far away to make the vote and still get to a 6 p.m. class.

She has no party affiliation, but she intended to vote against Amendment 1.

”It’s not going to help homeowners,” she said.

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Turned Away But Determined To Vote

Posted Jan 29, 2008 by Neil Johnson

Updated Jan 29, 2008 at 03:54 PM

Christine Gibson, a graduate student of University of South Florida, is determined to vote. It’s just that she can’t do it at the precinct on campus.

When the 25-year-old political science major tried to vote in the student center, she was told her precinct was behind University Mall, too distant to walk to.

That means she needs to call her husband to pick her up and drive her to the polling place.

“It’s my first apartment. Since I was a USF student, I thought they’d extend the privilege,” she said.

The apartment appears to be just far enough from campus to be in another precinct.

But voting will come with a price. She’ll have to skimp on preparation for a 6 p.m. class.

“I’ll make sure I vote, but I won’t have done my reading for the class,” she said.

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