Florida Voters Return More Than 500,000 Mail Ballots for November Election as Democrats Take Early Lead

More than half a million Floridians have already returned mail ballots for the Nov. 3 general election, and registered Democrats are out in front, according to the Florida Division of Elections' report on the morning of Tuesday, Oct. 13. Democrats had returned just over 226,000 ballots and Republicans nearly 190,000, a lead that reflects Democrats' longtime preference for voting by mail rather than any shift in the state's Republican-leaning electorate.

Voters with no party affiliation had returned nearly 98,000 ballots, and minor-party voters more than 13,000, according to the state figures reported by the News Service of Florida and NBC 6. Another 1.77 million vote-by-mail ballots that county supervisors of elections have sent out had not yet come back.

Mail ballot returns by party

The Division of Elections figures as of Tuesday morning break down this way:

By those numbers, Democrats account for roughly 43% of the ballots returned so far and Republicans about 36%. The Division of Elections publishes updated vote-by-mail and early voting counts daily through its county ballot reports portal, and the totals will grow quickly as more voters mail back ballots in the final three weeks.

Why the early numbers favor Democrats

The early Democratic edge is a familiar pattern in Florida. Republicans hold a voter registration advantage of roughly 1.55 million over Democrats statewide, according to CBS Miami, and they typically make up the difference with in-person early voting and Election Day turnout.

Mail voting has been a large share of the total in recent midterms. In 2022, about 7.8 million Floridians voted, with roughly 35% of ballots cast by mail and 29% at in-person early voting sites, CBS Miami reported. In 2018, about 8.3 million voted, with mail ballots making up about 31% of the vote and early voting nearly 33%. About 8 million ballots are expected this year, according to CBS Miami, which means the half million returned so far represent only a small slice of the final count.

Key deadlines

Voter registration for the general election closed Oct. 5. These are the remaining dates voters need to know, according to the Florida Department of State and CBS Miami:

Some counties will open early voting sites before Oct. 24 or keep them open after Oct. 31, so voters should check their county supervisor of elections' website for local dates and locations.

How to return a mail ballot

Under Florida law, a mail ballot counts only if it arrives at the supervisor of elections' office by 7 p.m. local time on Election Day, regardless of postmark. The Department of State notes that ballots can also be dropped in secure drop boxes at supervisor of elections main and branch offices until 7 p.m. on Election Day, and at designated early voting sites; hours and locations vary by county. Overseas voters get a 10-day extension for general elections if their ballot is postmarked or dated by Election Day.

Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections Craig Latimer has cautioned that "Most mail takes about a week to reach its destination," so voters who request a ballot close to the Oct. 22 deadline may want to return it in person rather than by mail.

Voters can track their ballot through their county's vote-by-mail status lookup. If a signature is missing or does not match the one on file, the voter can submit a cure affidavit, Form DS-DE 139, with a copy of identification by 5 p.m. on Nov. 5. Voters may designate someone to pick up a ballot for them using Form DS-DE 162, though a designee may collect ballots for no more than two voters per election outside the designee's own and those of immediate family members.

What's on the ballot

Floridians are choosing a successor to Gov. Ron DeSantis, who cannot seek a third consecutive term. The nominees are Republican U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds and Democrat David Jolly, a former Republican congressman. In a special election for the U.S. Senate seat once held by Marco Rubio, appointed Republican Sen. Ashley Moody faces Democratic state Rep. Angie Nixon of Jacksonville, who won an upset in the August primary over Alexander Vindman.

Voters will also decide three constitutional amendments placed on the ballot by the Legislature, each of which needs 60% approval to pass:

• Amendment 1 would raise the cap on the state's Budget Stabilization Fund, known as the rainy-day fund.
• Amendment 2 would exempt certain farm equipment and tangible property used in agriculture or agritourism from property taxes.
• Amendment 3, backed by DeSantis, would expand the homestead property tax exemption, reaching the first $250,000 of a home's value by 2028 for non-school levies.

Rules unchanged for 2026

A new state elections law, HB 991, which requires proof of citizenship and photo identification to register and vote, does not take effect until after this election, with most provisions starting Jan. 1, 2027. "In 2026, the rules are exactly the same as they were in 2024," Common Cause Florida Executive Director Amy Keith said, according to CBS Miami. Her group and other organizations are challenging the law in federal court in South Florida.

What's next

Mail ballot returns will climb steadily ahead of the Oct. 22 request deadline, and the first in-person early voting numbers will arrive after polls open statewide Oct. 24. Those early voting totals will show whether Republicans close the gap with Democrats as they have in past cycles. Voters who have not received a requested ballot should contact their county supervisor of elections, and those planning to vote by mail should send ballots back early or use a drop box to make sure they arrive by 7 p.m. on Nov. 3.