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SARASOTA COUNTY (WSNN) – Today is National Voter Registration Day, and several Suncoast residents have some messages about voting.  

From college students …

“Hey guys, I’m Shivani, and I’m a Ringling student who votes and you can be too,” Ringling College Student, Shivani Bathija said in a Twitter video.

To Sarasota County government…

“We’re here at the Voices and Votes exhibit at the North Sarasota Library to talk about National Voter Registration Day,” Sarasota County Government, Drew Winchester said in a Facebook Live video.

 To Sarasota residents…

“It’s important to register to vote in order to be heard,” Sarasota resident, Matthew Ponsano said. “If you want to change the world, get in and vote, don’t be lazy about it.”

Betty J. Johnson North Sarasota Library is a polling location in Sarasota County.   Adult Services Librarian, Lisa Riley, is already registered and says she

“It’s trying times in our country right now, and every vote counts, get out there,” Riley said. “Whichever way, however, you want to vote, just make sure you vote so your voice is heard.”

The deadline to register to vote in Florida is Monday, October 5th.  There are several ways to register.  Online at registertovoteflorida.gov or go to sarasotavotes.com. Or even go in person to an elections office or your local library.

Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections, Ron Turner says National Voter Registration Day serves as a reminder to register and recognize it’s election time.

“Ballots are about to mailed out to vote-by-mail voters, so it’s important for people to be paying attention now to this general election because it’s already underway,” Turner said.

Turner says they have more than 140,000 vote-by-mail ballot requests, a record for Sarasota County. And you can expect ballots to be lengthy.

“Two pages, 17 inches long,” Turner said. “Everything from the federal down to the local level, and everything in between.”

So he says to make your voice heard.

“It’s just important for everyone to get out there, one vote can make a difference, one vote, just ask the city of North Port.”

 The message couldn’t be clearer: register to vote; every vote counts.

Again, to register online for the November 3rd General Election you can visit registertovoteflorida.gov.The deadline is October 5th.