In-person early voting ended on Saturday in Florida, but what many people don't know is that you can still vote early in many counties on Sunday and/or Monday by picking up a vote-by-mail ballot in person at your nearest elections office, completing it on the spot and handing it in at the office. Please spread the word about this important aspect of early voting in Florida that seems to have gotten lost amid the focus on the long early voting lines in many parts of Florida. Click below for a partial list of elections offices in Florida that are open today - Sunday, November 4 - and.or Monday, November 5 where you can pick up and complete your vote-by-mail ballot!
The deadline was October 31 for a person to request that a vote-by-mail ballot be sent to them in the mail. Although this deadline has been widely reported, what hasn't been reported is that after you October 31, and through election day, you can still pick up a vote-by-mail ballot at your local elections office, complete it right there at the office and submit.
Here's a partial list of counties where elections office are open on Sunday where you can complete a vote-by-mail ballot:
Hillsborough County
Open for in-person absentee voting on Sunday, Nov. 4, 9 am - 5 pm
Over-the-counter Vote By Mail Ballots available at:
Robert L. Gilder Elections Service Center
2514 N. Falkenburg Rd.
Tampa, FL 33619
Leon County
Open for in-person absentee voting on Monday, Nov 5, from 8 am - 5 pm at:
The Leon County Courthouse Rotunda
301 South Monroe Street
Tallahassee, FL 32301
(This information is not on the Leon County SOE's website, but comes from OFA)
Miami-Dade County
Open Sunday, Nov. 4, 1 pm - 5 pm Note: You can vote today as long as you are in line at 5 pm!
The Miami Herald reports that the main Miami-Dade elections office will be open for four hours today at its main location:
2700 NW 87th Avenue
Doral, Florida 33172
phone: 305-499-VOTE (8683)
H/T to pamelabrown
Disturbing Update: The Miami-Dade Office has said "nevermind" and shut down the early today. Apparently the couldn't handle the large number of people who showed up. As one person waiting in line said: "This is America, not a third-world country." Amen to that! (H/T Mordoch)
Yet another update from Miami-Dade: Elections officials have now apparently changed their minds and will re-open the office at 5 pm for in-person absentee voting, in response to voters who waited in line patiently to vote and had the election office doors slammed in their face. Anyone who is in the line at 5 pm will be allowed to vote (at least that's what they're saying right now). What a mess. SVIP's diary has more.
Orange County
Open for in-person absentee voting on Sunday, Nov. 4, 10 am - 4 pm
119 West Kaley Street
Orlando, FL 32806
phone: 407-836-2070
Important Update: A judge just ruled to extend early voting on Sunday in Orange County. Orange County voters can vote 1 pm - 5 pm today at the Winter Park Public Library only at 460 E. New England Ave. The SOE said that early voters today will have to complete a provisional ballot, since the Republicans are appealing the ruling. So it might be a better bet to complete an absentee/mail-in ballot at the Kaley Street office.
Osceola County
Open for in-person absentee voting on Sunday, Nov. 4, Noon - 7 pm
2509 E. Irlo Bronson Memorial Highway
Kissimmee FL, 34744
phone: 407-742-6000
Palm Beach County
Open Sunday, Nov. 4, 9 am - 5 pm at the main office:
240 South Military Trail
West Palm Beach, FL 33415
Phone: (561) 656-6200
(Note: The Palm Beach SOE just announced today about the office being open to accept in-person absentee ballots at its office on Sunday and Monday. You can't find this information on their website, but it's in this breaking article.)
Pinellas County
Open for in-person absentee voting on Sunday, Nov. 4, 8 am - 5 pm and Monday, Nov. 5, 8 am - 5 pm at these locations:
Election Service Center
Starkey Lakes Corporate Center
13001 Starkey Road
Largo FL 33773
phone: (727) 464-VOTE (8683)
Pinellas County Courthouse
315 Court Street, Room 117
Clearwater FL 33756
County Building
501 First Avenue North
St. Petersburg FL 33701
(Fifth Street North entrance)
I will continue to research other Florida counties that are open on Sunday and update this list, but I wanted to get this up ASAP. Spread the word!!
Important note about signature: If you use this in-person vote-by-mail option to vote, please make sure that your signature on the mail-in ballot matches what is on your ID! We've had many reports of mail-in ballots being thrown out because the signatures don't match.
(Note: The Miami Herald reports that elections offices will be open in Broward County on Sunday, 10 am-4 pm, but only to accept absentee/vote-by-mail ballots that have already been sent out. They won't print out new ballots for people who walk in.)
UPDATE:
If your county's elections office isn't open on Sunday, you might be able to go there on Monday to pick up, complete and submit your vote-by-mail/absentee ballot. Here's a guide to help you find your county's supervisor of elections office. Most seem to be open 8-5 on Monday. But be sure to call your county SOE before going to their office to inquire about doing in-person absentee/vote-by-mail on Monday. The SOEs appear to have a lot of discretion in terms of how they handle, or don't, in-person absentee/vote-by-mail this close to election day.
H/T to beach babe in fl for bringing this up yesterday as well!
UPDATE 2:
Miami-Dade to allow voters to request and cast absentee ballots in person Sunday
UPDATE 3:
Early voting extended in Orange County
UPDATE 4:
PBC open for voting, FL Dems file lawsuit over early voting
UPDATE 5:
Miami-Dade shuts down in-person absentee voting after crowds line up outside (WTF? So they weren't prepared for crowds???)
UPDATE 6:
Miami-Dade to resume in-person absentee voting after temporarily shutting it down
An attempt by the Miami-Dade elections department to let more people vote early Sunday devolved into chaos after the department was overwhelmed with voters.
The department locked its doors about an hour into the four-hour operation without explanation, then said it would resume allowing voters to request and cast absentee ballots in person. Miami-Dade had opened its Doral headquarters from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. as a work-around to a provision in state law that eliminated early voting the Sunday before Election Day.
Anyone in line by 5 p.m. at the Doral elections headquarters at 2700 NW 87th Ave. will be allowed to vote, department spokeswoman Christina White said at 3 p.m. The department brought in a second ballot printer and more staffers to re-open.
Shortly before the temporary shutdown an hour earlier, the department had said it would not be able to accommodate more than the around 180 voters who were in line by 2 p.m. Then the office shut its doors, and people in line started shouting, “Let us vote!”
Unbelievable.