Those rules scared most organizations away from doing registrations, including the League of Women Voters and the black Greek letter organizations, which historically have performed voter registration as part of their civic service duties.

“We covered a lot of ground in a short period of time,” said Vanessa Woodard Byers, civic engagement chair with the Gamma Zeta Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. “Of course we wish we had gotten more people, but under the conditions we faced we’re just grateful and prayerful.”

Early Voting in Florida goes from Oct. 27 through Nov. 3 – a much shorter period than voters had in 2008. The state Legislature reduced the number of days from 14 to 8. In that time frame, voters can cast ballots at designated precincts prior to Election Day, Tuesday Nov. 6.

In 2008, influential clergy members, civic leaders and activists across the state helped drive the record turnout of black voters. Pastor Brian Brown hopes to surpass that milestone this year, despite the shorter period.

“It’s important that we make every vote count because we don't want the labor of those who fought bled and died to be in vain,” said Brown, pastor of St. Mark Missionary Baptist Church in St. Petersburg. “Failure to vote makes a mockery of the sacrifice and service of all of those who have gone before us.”

On Saturday, each region will host a rally to mark the start of early voting.

In South Florida, Rev. Al Sharpton will lead four rallies, starting 6:30 a.m. in downtown Miami and ending during the afternoon in Pompano Beach. There also will be street marches from parks to early voting sites in black, Haitian and Hispanic neighborhoods.

On Saturday, activists in five major regions – Miami, Jacksonville, Tampa, Orlando and Palm Beach -- will host a rally to mark the start of early voting. The regional coordination comes through a partnership between Florida New Majority, SEIU State Council and a host of local organizations and faith communities.

“It’s recognition of what’s at stake and of how much we have to gain working together that has brought the grassroots out in force across Florida,” said Gihan Perera, executive director of Florida New Majority and FNM Education Fund.

In South Florida, Rev. Al Sharpton will lead four rallies, starting 6:30 a.m. in downtown Miami and ending during the afternoon in Pompano Beach. There also will be street marches from parks to early voting sites in black, Haitian and Hispanic neighborhoods.

In Jacksonville, voters will gather at Norwood Flea Market, where ministers will bless the city’s polling precincts, and then the crowd will march over to the Supervisor of Elections office to vote.

Similar actions and rallies will occur in Orlando, Tampa and Delray Beach.

On Sunday, congregations from several churches in the five regions will leave services to go to designated early voting sites to vote as part of the “Souls to the Polls” Weekend of activities slated for Oct. 27 and 28 – the first two days of the early voting period.

Clergy members and others laud weekend voting because it fits the schedules of working-class voters, who have a harder time getting to precincts during the work week.

Pundits and political analysts around the country have cast doubt that blacks, Latinos and young people will come out in numbers similar to four years ago. Monday’s meeting is designed to show the black community is engaged and ready to work, said Bishop Victor T. Curry, senior pastor at New Birth and president of the Miami chapter of the National Action Network.

“Some people think the 2008 turnout was a fluke,” Curry said. “We will show that this is the real thing. We know that when people turn up to the polls we all win.”