Floridians Vote for Governor, Senate and Amendment 3 as Flooding Moves About 25 Polling Places in 7 Counties

Floridians are voting Tuesday for governor, U.S. Senate and a property tax overhaul on the ballot as Amendment 3, but in parts of the state the first task was finding the polling place. Record flooding along the central east coast, the Treasure Coast and around Lake Okeechobee forced election officials to move about 25 polling places in seven counties, according to Local 10 News, a day after Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency for the hardest-hit areas.

Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time. Anyone in line at 7 p.m. may still vote. In the western Panhandle, which runs on Central time, polls close at 7 p.m. Central, or 8 p.m. Eastern.

Why polling places moved

DeSantis signed Executive Order 26-227 on Monday, Nov. 2, declaring an emergency in Brevard, DeSoto, Hardee, Highlands, Indian River, Martin and St. Lucie counties after a broad low-pressure system dumped rain on the peninsula from Oct. 31 through Nov. 2. The order includes a provision for supervisors of elections who cannot fully comply with state polling-place requirements: they must notify the Florida Department of State of any partial or substitute measures, which require approval from the secretary of state.

State law requires election officials under a state of emergency to designate a new polling place that is accessible to the public on Election Day and to post notice at the old site directing voters to the new one, the News Service of Florida reported. "The Division of Elections is in contact with the counties impacted and will respond pursuant to state law, as necessary," Department of State communications director Gretl Plessinger said in an email. The department said it was updating its website as supervisors reported changes and urged voters in flooded areas to check with their local supervisor before leaving home.

Florida has rearranged voting around storms before. After Hurricane Michael struck the Panhandle as a Category 5 storm in 2018, then-Gov. Rick Scott ordered alternative polling sites in the affected counties. But Michael made landfall on Oct. 10, leaving weeks to spread the word. This time the water rose a day or two before the election. "We will get the word out the best we can," Brevard County Supervisor of Elections Tim Bobanic said.

Where polling places changed

Supervisors in the flooded counties announced these relocations before polls opened. Election officials said more changes were possible and that signs would be posted at original sites:

In Indian River County, the supervisor of elections said voters in Precinct 7, normally at Sebastian Church of God, and Precinct 26, normally at Morning Star Church in Vero Beach, would not vote at their usual sites and posted the new assignments on the office website. Palm Beach County said affected voters would get a text or email if the office had their contact information.

Voters should confirm their precinct on their county supervisor of elections website before leaving. Unlike early voting, when any early site in the county would do, Election Day voters must cast ballots at their assigned polling place. Brevard voters can check VoteBrevard.gov or call (321) 290-8683.

Brevard scrambles after 2 feet of rain

Brevard County, where parts of Palm Bay and Melbourne received roughly 2 feet of rain in less than 24 hours, faced the steepest challenge. Some of Bobanic's offices in Titusville, Melbourne and Palm Bay closed Monday because of the weather, and a canvassing board meeting set for Monday afternoon was canceled, though most polling sites were already set up. "For the safety and security of our election workers and the voters of Brevard, it is necessary to relocate a couple of precinct polling locations due to these unprecedented circumstances," Bobanic said in announcing the moves.

Brevard Public Schools stayed closed Tuesday. At the Red Cross shelter at Parker Memorial Missionary Baptist Church in Cocoa, the county's only evacuation shelter as of Monday night, the pastor said church buses were ready to drive displaced residents to their polling places.

A mostly smooth start in South Florida

In Broward County, a systemwide issue affected polling sites for 10 to 15 minutes after polls opened before officials fixed it, WSVN reported. Broward officials said more than 450,000 voters had already cast ballots and they expected about 225,000 more on Tuesday. In Miami-Dade, Supervisor of Elections Alina Garcia said more than 530,000 people had already voted, and WSVN reported that roughly a quarter million more voters were expected Tuesday.

Lines formed early elsewhere. At the Coliseum in St. Petersburg, about 60 people were waiting when polls opened at 7 a.m., and voters were moving through in about 10 minutes, the Tampa Bay Times reported.

More than 5.4 million already voted

More than 5.4 million Floridians, about 40% of registered voters, cast ballots by mail or at early voting sites before Tuesday, according to the Tampa Bay Times. Democrats voted early at a higher rate: about half of registered Democrats had voted heading into Election Day compared with 39% of Republicans, according to Division of Elections data compiled by Fresh Take Florida. About 31% of voters registered with minor parties or no party had voted by Monday.

Republicans, who hold a registration edge of about 1.5 million active voters, still led in total ballots cast, but their lead in mail and early ballots was about 133,000 as of Monday afternoon, compared with roughly 300,000 in the 2022 midterm. Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia said he expects "massive Republican voter turnout on Election Day." Early totals do not show how anyone voted, and no results will be released until polls close.

What is on the ballot

Every Florida voter will see the race for governor, where Republican U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds faces Democrat David Jolly, a former congressman, to succeed term-limited DeSantis. The U.S. Senate race pits Republican Sen. Ashley Moody against Democrat Angie Nixon. Voters also choose the three Cabinet members and decide three proposed constitutional amendments, including Amendment 3, which would sharply raise the homestead exemption for non-school property taxes and needs 60% approval to pass. Congressional, legislative and local races vary by district.

What to bring and what's next

Voters need a valid photo ID with a signature, such as a Florida driver's license or U.S. passport. Anyone holding an unreturned mail ballot can drop it off at their county supervisor of elections office by 7 p.m. or bring it to their polling place and ask poll workers to cancel it so they can vote in person.

Results begin posting after polls close at 7 p.m., with the Panhandle's Central time zone counties closing an hour later Eastern. Voters affected by flooding who run into problems at a relocated site can contact their county supervisor of elections or the Florida Department of State's Division of Elections.