PRIMARY DAY: What you need to know to cast your ballot in Florida Tuesday

The Primary is underway with voters in neighborhoods across the Big Bend headed to the polls this Election Day. ABC 27 and our neighborhood reporters will provide live updates here throughout the day and tonight as results come in.

Tuesday, August 20th
Secretary of State Cord Byrd issued the following statement prior to Florida’s Primary Election on Tuesday, August 20, 2024. “The Florida Department of State is prepared to assist Florida’s 67 Supervisors of Elections during the Primary Election on August 20, 2024. I advise Florida’s registered voters to review key voting information before they head to the polls on Election Day,” said Secretary of State Cord Byrd. “The Department will report preliminary election results from the counties beginning at 8:00 p.m. eastern time at https://floridaelectionwatch.gov [link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com] .”

Key Information for Florida Voters
Voting at the Polls on Election Day: The polls are open on Election Day from 7:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. local time. Any voters waiting in line at 7:00 p.m. will have the opportunity to cast a ballot. On Election Day, voters must vote at their assigned polling place. Voters can find their assigned polling place by looking at their voter information card, contacting their county Supervisor of Elections or using the Division’s Check Your Voter Status [link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com] webpage.

ID Requirements at the Polls: By law, all voters must provide a current and valid photo ID at the polls during early voting or on Election Day. Any one of the following 12 IDs is acceptable (the ID must include a photo):

• Florida driver’s license
• Florida identification card issued by the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles
• United States passport
• Debit or credit card
• Military identification
• Student identification
• Retirement center identification
• Neighborhood association identification
• Public assistance identification
• Veteran health identification card issued by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs
• License to carry a concealed weapon or firearm pursuant to s. 790.06 F.S.
• Employee identification card issued by any branch, department, agency, or entity of the federal government, the state, a county or a municipality.

If the voter’s photo ID does not include a signature, the voter will be asked to provide another ID with a signature. If the voter does not bring a proper ID, he or she can still vote a provisional ballot. The provisional ballot will count, provided the voter is eligible, voted in the proper precinct, and the signature on the provisional ballot certificate matches the signature in the voter’s registration record.

Election Results & Statistics

Election Results: On Tuesday, August 20, preliminary unofficial election results for Florida’s Primary Election will be available on the Florida Election Watch website at https://floridaelectionwatch.gov [link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com] . Although polls close at 7:00 p.m. local time, Florida has two time zones (Central and Eastern) and results will not be posted to the Florida Election Watch website until 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

Voter Turnout: On Election Day, the public and media may track hourly voter turnout on the county level and the state level from 7:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. (local time).

Early Voting and Vote-by-Mail Ballot Statistics: The Division of Elections is providing daily early voting and vote-by-mail ballot statistics. These statistics are compiled from reports last filed by the Supervisor of Elections for each county. To access these statistics, please visit the Division of Elections Vote-by-Mail Request & Early Voting Statistics webpage [link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com] .

Additionally, counties will be making available on their respective websites, the number of vote-by-mail ballots received and the number of vote-by-mail ballots not yet counted on an hourly basis starting at 7:00 p.m. local time, while the county canvassing board is actively counting.

Book closing (Registration Deadline) Reports: On July 22, voter registration books closed for the Primary Election. The Division of Elections prepares detailed statistical reports on the number of active registered voters as of the day of book closing. The reports are available in Excel and PDF format. To access the current and archived book closing reports, please visit the Division of Elections website [link.mediaoutreach.meltwater.com] .