General Voting Information
Election Dates
A General Election is held in November of every even-numbered year. The Primary Election for nominating party nominees for the General Election is 10 weeks before the General Election. Additionally, a Presidential Preference Primary is scheduled in January of Presidential Election years. Special elections may be called at any time during the year. The election dates for 2010 are:
| Primary Election........ | August 24, 2010 |
| General Election........ | November 2, 2010 |
Voter Registration Book Closing DatesBack
You can apply to register to vote at any time. However, to vote in an election, you must be registered in the state by the book closing date, which is normally the 29th day before each election. The book closing dates for the 2010 election cycle are:
| Primary Election........ | July 26, 2010 |
| General Election........ | October 4, 2010 |
Party AffiliationBack
Florida is a closed primary state. If you wish to vote in a partisan primary election, you must be a registered voter in the party for which the primary is being held. However, if all candidates for an office have the same party affiliation and the winner will not have opposition in the general election, all voters, regardless of party affiliation may vote in the primary election for that office. In addition, all registered voters, regardless of party affiliation, can vote on issues and nonpartisan candidates in a primary election.
All party changes must be made by the end of the 29th day before the election.
How to Make Name, Address and Party Affiliation ChangesBack
Name Change
If your name changes, you must use the Florida Voter Registration Application to provide your new name to the Supervisor of Elections.
Address Change
You are required to vote in the precinct of your legal residence.
If you move within a county after you have registered to vote, please notify your Supervisor of Elections. You may provide a signed, written notice to your supervisor, call you supervisor, or send an e-mail. If you call or send an e-mail, you must also include your date of birth with your change of address.
If you move to another county, use the Florida Voter Registration Application to change your address and mail the application to the Supervisor of Elections in your new county.
If you have not notified the Supervisor of Elections that you have moved prior to election day, you may go to the polling place for your precinct of legal residence on election day and fill out the required change of address information at the polls.
Party Affiliation Changes
If you want to change your party affiliation, you must submit a Florida Voter Registration Application to the office of your Supervisor of Elections.
Absentee VotingBack
Florida law allows all qualified voters to request an absentee to request an absentee ballot from the Supervisor of Elections. A member of the voter’s immediate family or legal guardian may also request an absentee ballot for a voter, if directly instructed to do so by the voter. The request can cover all elections through the next two regularly scheduled general elections. A request for an absentee ballot to be mailed must be made no later than 5 p.m. on the 6th day before an election. Contact your Supervisor of Elections to request an absentee ballot.
Early VotingBack
Voters may vote in person by casting a ballot prior to Election Day. The voter will use the same type of voting equipment that is used at the polls on Election Day. Early voting begins 15 days before an election and ends on the 2nd day before an election. During this period, early voting is conducted 8 hours per day on each weekday and for 8 hours in the aggregate for each weekend. Supervisors of Elections designate early voting sites 30 days prior to an election. Early voting will be offered in the main or branch office of the Supervisor of Elections. They may also designate any city hall or public library geographically located so that all voters in the county will have an equal opportunity to cast a vote. Contact your Supervisor of Elections for dates, times and locations in your county.
Voting at the PollsBack
On Election Day, the polls are open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. and are normally less busy during the mid-morning and mid-afternoon.
If you do not know the location of your polling place, contact your Supervisor of Elections. Also, many Supervisors of Elections have precinct and polling place finders on their web sites to provide you with the information on where to vote.
At the polls, you will be asked to provide a valid picture identification with signature. The following photo ids will be accepted:
- Florida driver’s license
- Florida identification card issued by the 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.
If your photo identification does not contain your signature, you will be asked to provide an additional identification that includes a signature.
If you do not have the proper identification, you will be provided with a provisional ballot. Your provisional ballot will count if the signature on the provisional ballot envelope matches the signature on your voter registration application.
