This November, voters in Florida will weigh in on six constitutional amendments. As part of our Your Voice project “Florida’s Changing Constitution”… today we look at Amendments 5 and 6.


Congresswoman Corrine Brown’s district stretches more than 120 miles from Jacksonville from Orlando. It’s shaped like the country of Italy, is only one mile wide in places and, by design, swoops through several largely African-American communities. Amendments 5 and 6 seek to change that by overhauling the way districts are drawn. But as Steve Brown reports, high-profile opponents of the measures say they would hurt minority representation.

The state of Florida, by most accounts, has one of the most successful community college systems in the United States. It’s led the country in the number of associates degrees issued for six straight years. Traditionally, most of those degree holders entered the work force or moved on to a four-year university. But thanks to recent state legislation, more community colleges can retain those students by offering their own bachelor’s degree programs. And as Steve Brown reports, the move could give traditional universities some previously-unseen competition.

Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama announced a major shift in his position on NASA funding this weekend. At a campaign stop in Titusville, he promised not to dip into the space agency's budget to pay for his other programs. Steve Brown attended the rally, and filed this report…