Voters Cast Ballots Early at Temple Terrace Library

City Councilman Ron Govin and his wife, Judy, were in line Tuesday at the Temple Terrace Library.

They weren’t waiting to check out books; they were there to vote early in the 2012 Election.

“We always early vote,” Govin said. “It’s just convenient, and we usually work the polls on Election Day.”

The Temple Terrace Library is one of 15 Early Voting sites in Hillsborough County. Early Voting began Oct 27 and will run through Nov. 3.

According to the Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections Office, a total of 74,559 votes have been cast early as of the end of day Oct. 30—4,976 of those were cast at the Temple Terrace Library.

Unlike Election Day when voters have to vote in their designated polling places, those who take advantage of Early Voting can cast their ballots at one of the designated sites.

“I thought it’d be less of a line,” said Pat Buhite, of Temple Terrace, as she waited outside the library for her turn to cast her ballot.

Veronica Pingling, of Tampa, said she has to work on Election Day. She came to the library Tuesday to vote early instead. It was the second time she has ever voted.

Earlier this year, Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections Earl Lennard said Early Voting is gaining in popularity because it’s easy.

There is a special page on the Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections website that lists wait times at each Early Voting site in real time. On Tuesday morning, wait times at the Temple Terrace Library varied from 0-15 minutes to 15-45 minutes.

Hours of operation at Early Voting sites are 7 a.m.-7 p.m. In addition to the Temple Terrace Library, other sites include:

• Fred B. Karl County Center, 601 E. Kennedy Blvd., 26th Floor, Tampa
• Robert L. Gilder Elections Service Center, 2514 N. Falkenburg Road, Tampa
• Bloomingdale Regional Public Library, 1906 Bloomingdale Ave., Valrico
• C. Blythe Andrews Jr. Public Library (formerly College Hill Branch Library), 2607 E. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Tampa
• Jan Kaminis Platt Regional Library, 3910 South Manhattan Ave., Tampa
• Jimmie B. Keel Regional Library, 2902 W. Bearss Ave., Tampa
• New Tampa Regional Library, 10001 Cross Creek Blvd., Tampa
• North Tampa Branch Library, 8916 North Blvd., Tampa
• Plant City, City Hall, 302 W. Reynolds St., Plant City
• Riverview Branch Library, 10509 Riverview Drive, Riverview
• SouthShore Regional Library, 15816 Beth Shields Way, Ruskin
• Town ’N Country Regional Public Library, 7606 Paula Drive, Suite 120, Tampa
• Upper Tampa Bay Regional Public Library, 11211 Countryway Blvd., Tampa
• West Tampa Branch Library, 2313 West Union St., Tampa

All voters must provide valid photo and signature identification. Acceptable examples include:

• Florida driver’s license
• Florida ID card issued by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
• Debit or credit card
• Military ID
• Student ID
• Retirement Center ID
• Neighborhood Association ID
• Public Assistance ID

For more information, visit the Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections Office online.

See also:
Temple Terrace Patch Election Guide 2012 
Early Voting Begins Oct. 27