Vote yes or no on Florida Amendments? What Amendment 1 means, partisan school board elections

Do you know about the 2024 Florida Amendments?

Florida voters will be faced with six constitutional amendment proposals on the Nov. 5 ballot. Each needs at least 60% of votes to be enshrined in the Florida Constitution.

Are you still unsure about what each amendment means and whether you're going to cast a "yes" or "no" vote?

In this story, we're highlighting Amendment 1 to help you prepare for Election Day, which is from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. The deadline to register to vote in the general election is Monday, Oct. 7. The deadline to request a vote-by-mail ballot, previously known as an "absentee ballot," is Thursday, Oct. 24. If you wanted to vote on the candidates and the six Florida Amendments ahead of time, early voting runs Saturday, Oct. 26, to Saturday, Nov. 2, with times varying by county.

A video playlist at the top of this story and a video at the bottom further explains each proposed amendment and offers political expertise from USA TODAY Network-Florida journalists.

2024 Florida Amendments: Amendment 1, partisan election of members of district school boards aka 'partisan school board member amendment'

Sponsor: Florida Legislature

Summary: Proposing amendments to the State Constitution to require members of a district school board to be elected in a partisan election rather than a nonpartisan election and to specify that the amendment only applies to elections held on or after the November 2026 general election. However, partisan primary elections may occur before the 2026 general election for purposes of nominating political party candidates to that office for placement on the 2026 general election ballot.

2024 Florida Amendments explained

Below is a video segment that further explains each proposed amendment and offers political expertise from USA TODAY Network-Florida journalists: John Torres, engagement editor at FLORIDA TODAY, political reporter John Kennedy, based at the (Sarasota) Herald-Tribune, and political reporter James Call, based at the Tallahassee Democrat

Contributing: C.A. Bridges, USA TODAY Network-Florida