Central Florida Public Media is launching a comprehensive 2026 voter guide as part of two collaborative journalism initiatives. Working with the News Collaborative of Central Florida (NCCF), a collective of independent local news outlets and aligned partners, and separately with five public media organizations across Florida, Central Florida Public Media has created a more comprehensive, nonpartisan voter resource than ever before ahead of the Aug. 18 primary election.
Created in partnership with NCCF members WKMG-News 6, the Orlando Sentinel, Winter Park Voice, VoxPopuli of West Orange, Oviedo Community News and the Osceola News-Gazette, and with Florida public media outlets WUSF (Tampa), WLRN (Miami), WJCT (Jacksonville), WGCU (Fort Myers) and WUWF (Pensacola), the voter guide expands coverage of federal, state, county and judicial races impacting Central Florida.
"From the beginning, the goal of the News Collaborative of Central Florida was to better serve our communities with even more access to trustworthy information,” said Judith Smelser, president and general manager of Central Florida Public Media and NCCF task force chair. “This voter guide reflects the power of collaboration. By working alongside both our local news partners and fellow public media outlets across Florida, we’ve been able to expand election coverage beyond what any one newsroom could accomplish independently.”
Candidates were invited to respond to a standardized questionnaire developed by each collaboration. If a candidate did not respond, that is noted in the guide, and when possible, publicly available information from campaign websites or social media is included.
The regional voter guide is the latest initiative from NCCF, which was established following the 2024 Central Florida Journalism Ecosystem Summit. In 2025, NCCF members jointly reported on the local impacts of Florida’s Unauthorized Public Camping and Public Sleeping law, producing more than 100 stories. Earlier this year, NCCF announced its new editorial focus would be the 2026 mid-term elections. Central Florida Public Media’s partnership with WUSF, WLRN, WJCT, WGCU and WUWF also marks the second consecutive election cycle in which Florida public media outlets have collaborated on a statewide voter guide project.
Readers can access the 2026 voter guide starting Friday, July 31, at cfpublic.org/vote, along with Central Florida Public Media’s full coverage of the mid-term elections.
About News Collaborative of Central Florida
News Collaborative of Central Florida is a collective of independent local news outlets and aligned partners working toward a more informed and engaged Central Florida. It grew out of the Central Florida Journalism Ecosystem Summit, created in 2024 by Central Florida Public Media, Central Florida Foundation and Oviedo Community News. Confirmed participants in NCCF’s 2026 collaborative election coverage include Central Florida Public Media, LkldNow, Ocala Gazette, Orlando Sentinel, Osceola News Gazette, Oviedo Community News, VoxPopuli, Winter Park Voice and WKMG News 6.
About Central Florida Public Media
Central Florida Public Media is a nonprofit, public media news organization based in Orlando, Fla., serving nine counties across Central Florida with trustworthy, independent journalism. Community owned and independently operated for over four decades, Central Florida Public Media is primarily supported by generous individual donors, foundations and corporate sponsors. Central Florida Public Media operates 90.7; 90.7-2 HD Classical; and 89.5 WMFV, public radio for The Villages, Leesburg and The Golden Triangle. As Central Florida’s primary provider of NPR programming and high-quality local journalism, Central Florida Public Media can be enjoyed on multiple platforms including all podcast platforms, smart speakers and the Central Florida Public Media app and website. To learn more, visit www.cfpublic.org.
Media Contact:
Lilly Carrion
407-680-1320
Lilly.carrion@andbarr.co