Florida’s early voting for the presidential election ends Saturday

On By Littum

Florida early voting for the Nov. 5 general election officially ends on Saturday for a majority of the state’s 67 counties. Last-minute voters must cast their ballots in person on Election Day or ensure that their mail-in ballots are received by the time the polls close at 6 p.m.

Nearly 20 counties have extended early voting to Sunday due to the impact of Hurricanes Helene and Milton.

So far, less than half of Florida’s 14 million registered voters have done so. In the 2020 general election, 9,187,898 Floridians cast their ballots early or by mail. As of Friday, there are still 914,270 unreturned postal ballots.

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Republicans are nearly twice as many as Democrats in early voting, while only slightly more Democrats have voted by mail compared to Republicans. However, the election may come down to independents in the Sunshine State, as 1,364,203 have voted so far.

There is still time to make sure your voice is heard in the 2024 presidential election on November 5. Here’s what you need to know.

When does Florida’s early voting end?

For most of Florida’s counties, early voting ends at 7 p.m. on Saturday, as required by state and federal law. There are 17 counties that have applied for an extension, allowing residents to cast their votes early on Sunday.

  • Alachua: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m
  • Bradford: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m
  • Broward: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m
  • Charlotte: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, from 07.00 to 7:00 PM (Due to Hurricane Milton, Early Voting at the Historic Courthouse has been moved to the Charlotte Harbor Event & Conference Center)
  • Duval: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, Monday-Friday, 7-19, Saturday-Sunday, 8-17
  • Gadsden: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, Monday-Friday at 9-18, Saturday-Sunday at 9-17
  • Hillsborough: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m
  • Leon: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, most locations from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Leon County Courthouse open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
  • Levy: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m
  • Miami-Dade: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m
  • Orange: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, from 8 to 20
  • Osceola: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, from 8 to 20
  • Palm Beach: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m
  • Polk: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m
  • Sarasota: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, from 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. (Note that some polling locations have changed due to Milton)
  • Seminole: 21 Oct.-Nov. 3, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m
  • St. Lucy: 21 Oct.-Nov. 2, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., November 3 from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m

Click here to see a complete list of Florida county early voting locations.

What do I need to vote early in Florida?

All you need to bring to cast your vote early in Florida is a valid photo ID with a signature. Of course, you must also be a registered voter.

Acceptable forms include:

  • Florida driver’s license or ID card issued by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
  • American passport
  • debit or credit card
  • military ID
  • student ID
  • pensioner ID
  • neighborhood association ID
  • public assistance ID
  • Veterans Health ID issued by the US Department of Veterans Affairs
  • permit to carry a concealed weapon or firearm
  • employee identification card issued by the federal government, the state of Florida, or any county or municipality

The turnout in Florida so far

Here’s a snapshot of early voting and vote-by-mail turnout in Florida as of 8:12 Friday:

Vote for email numbers

  • Republicans: 923,497
  • Democrat: 1,091,810
  • Other: 55,372
  • NPA: 539,233
  • Total: 2,609,912

Early voting figures

  • Republicans: 2,072,374
  • Democrat: 1,126,301
  • Other: 98,403
  • NPA: 824,970
  • Total: 4,122,048

Total number of voters

  • Republicans: 2,995,871
  • Democrat: 2,218,171
  • Other: 153,775
  • NPA: 1,364,203
  • Total: 6,732,020

Will you see breakdown in your county?

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Early voting and voting by mail in Escambia, Santa Rosa counties

Here’s a breakdown of how voters in Escambia and Santa Rosa County voted in the 2024 presidential election.

Escambia County — 96,506 votes so far

  • Voting by mail: 29,430
    • Republicans: 12,976
    • Democrats: 11,273
    • Other: 601
    • NPA: 4,580
  • Early voting by personal attendance: 67,076
    • Republicans: 38,994
    • Democrats: 17,080
    • Other: 1,469
    • NPA: 9,533

Santa Rosa County – 70,163 votes so far

  • Voting by mail: 14,287
    • Republicans: 7,551
    • Democrats: 4,036
    • Other: 343
    • NPA: 2,357
  • Early voting by personal attendance: 55,876
    • Republicans: 40,143
    • Democrats: 6,856
    • Other: 1,224
    • NPA: 7,653

How does turnout compare to the 2020 presidential election?

Florida had a whopping 71.8% voter turnout in the 2020 presidential election, which is 5.8% more than the national average, according to Pew Research.

Turnout in the 2020 presidential election:

  • On election day: 1,942,102 (17.4%)
  • Votes Submitted: 4,546,895 (40.9%)
  • Early in-person voting: 4,332,912 (38.9%)

Turnout in the 2024 presidential election (so far):

  • Votes Submitted: 2,609,912
  • Early voting in person: 4,122,048

Do we know the results on election night in Florida?

There’s a pretty good chance we won’t just get a look at Florida’s election results on election night and have enough votes to project the winners. Florida will begin tabulating its results as soon as they receive a ballot, giving it a head start by Tuesday.

In 2020, nearly 80% of Florida voters cast their ballots before Election Day, so it should be fairly quick to get the results. However, there are only ballots to consider.

Absent military and citizens overseas have up to 10 days to get their ballots delivered, provided they are postmarked by Election Day.

Provisional ballots cast at polls by voters without proper ID or with minor errors that have since been corrected will have until 17 Thursday to present.

Contributors: CA Bridges, Cheryl McCloud — USA TODAY NETWORK – Florida