Little blue and white circular H stickers peppered people's shirts as they stood in front of fields of black muck waiting for President Bill Clinton's voter registration rally to start in Belle Glade Tuesday afternoon.
The former president celebrated his 41st wedding anniversary making a case for his wife's education and infrastructure plans in western Palm Beach County.
"The federal court in Tallahassee gave us an extra day of registration," he said. "Take advantage of it."
Before jumping into specifics, Bill Clinton paused to remember Floridians and those in the southeast who lost their lives and property in Hurricane Matthew. The hurricane, which brushed past Florida late last week, left South Florida unscathed.
“In Florida, you need to make sure rising sea levels don’t flood your city,” he said. “You need to make sure that the Everglades are not 10 feet underwater.”
The former president drew a diverse crowd to the Dolly Hand Cultural Center at Palm Beach State College — from local activists to environmental researchers from the University of Florida, retirees and students.
For Duval Grandison, who already knows he’s voting for Hillary, the rally was a chance to hear more about how Hillary plans to tackle unemployment in Palm Beach County. That's why people came out today, he said.
Grandison, 24, works two jobs — unloading trucks at Dolly Hand Cultural Center, where Bill Clinton’s rally was hosted, and as a customer host at a Walmart in Clewiston.
“There’s a reason so many people are mad,” Clinton said. “About 80 percent of us still haven’t had a raise since the crash, if you adjust for inflation.”
Polifact checked a similar claim Hillary Clinton made earlier this year and rated it mostly true.
Rosemary Holmes, a registered Democrat who campaigned for Hillary in 2008 but voted for Barack Obama, also calls the economy, even though she just retired, the most important issue for her this election.
“We need better job creation and better equality in employment,” she said. “I really feel for young people coming out of college. Salaries in South Florida are not where they need to be able to support yourself as a young, single person.”
