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Florida's Secret Election Power

What's happening in the Florida election, and why we have SO MUCH POWER

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Florida's Secret Election Power
New York Times

Election season, what an amazing time.

It's the time where you learn how different some of your close friends really are from you. Campaign ads and bumper stickers are "in," Facebook posting is reduced to obscure articles about opponents and we can't wait for it all to be over.

While he lost his bid for the Republican nomination, Marco Rubio is vying to return to his senate seat. Rubio seems to be keeping his career alive, and according to Real Clear Politics, he is nearly six points ahead of Democrat Patrick Murphy. This was a stark contrast to the presidential primary where Donald Trump demolished Rubio with nearly twice as many votes.

Amendment 1 is probably the most talked about, If for no other reason, it made a fool of a lot of people. The amendment seemed to promise freedom to solar power for individuals, however voters learned recently that it was designed to intentionally confuse voters. The Sun Sentinel wrote an opinion piece on the issue that discusses leaked tapes of officials admitting the amendment was meant to confuse and trick voters.

Amendment 2 hopes to give Florida residents access to medical marijuana, "allows medical use of marijuana for individuals with debilitating medical conditions as determined by a licensed Florida physician." The bill comes after the state nearly passed marijuana legalization for recreational use in 2014 and coming 3 points shy of the required vote. Proponents of recreational marijuana use hope the passing of amendment 2 will help a future bill for marijuana use for all.

With the election less than two weeks away, many Florida voters are having to make some tough decisions on how to vote. Regardless of whether your votes are red or blue, Florida is a fantastic example of how divided the political parties currently are heading into election day, and how much power the voters of Florida have with deciding the next president.

Florida has a special tradition when it comes to elections for president: we always screw it up. Tied at third for the highest amount of electoral votes with 29, we're probably one of the most powerful states in deciding the president, and unlike California (55), Texas (38) and New York (29), we don't necessarily swing one way all the time. In fact, nearly half of the past 10 elections have voted blue, with the other half red.

You've heard it before and you'll hear it 300 more times before November 8th. Vote. You might not care at all about Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump, but there are so many other things at stake this election. it's not cool to sit out of an election when we have so many other positions that need to be filled and so many other measures that need to be decided.

Get informed, get registered and vote.

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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
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