Monday, July 22, 2024

Deadline to register to vote ahead of this year’s Primary is here

Deadline to register to vote ahead of this year's Primary is here

By Ryan Nicol on July 22, 2024

The deadline for voters to register and vote in this year's Primary in Florida has arrived.

Monday is the final day to either register to vote or change party affiliation to vote in the Primary of your choice on Aug. 20.

Florida is a closed Primary state, meaning that in order to vote in either a Democratic or Republican Primary, you must be registered as a member of that particular party.

Those Primaries will allow voters to select their preferred Democratic or Republican candidates in this year's U.S. Senate races, U.S. House races across the state, all state legislative contests and partisan elections at the local levels. The winners of those respective Primaries will then advance to the Nov. 5 General Election.

Also on the ballot in the upcoming Primaries are nonpartisan local races which could be decided that night. And in partisan elections, Primary night could also determine a winner if no candidates from other parties are running (for instance, if only Democratic candidates have filed to run in a particular race). In that case, the otherwise partisan Primary would be open to all voters.

Once registered, there are a few other upcoming important dates that voters should know. Early voting begins in August, though dates will vary depending on where you are in the state.

In Broward, early voting will run from Aug. 10 until Aug. 18 from 10 a.m. until 7 p.m. In Duval County, meanwhile, early voting starts on Aug. 5, also ending on Aug. 18. But early voting locations will be open at 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. So check your local Supervisor of Elections website.

The deadline to request a mail-in ballot in Aug. 8 at 5 p.m. The number of requests for those ballots has declined throughout the state, due in part to a 2021 law that canceled preexisting vote-by-mail requests.

Previously, those requests could last for multiple election cycles. While voters were allowed to renew their requests, it seems as if many around the state have not done so.

Election Day will take place on Tuesday, Aug. 20. Polls will be up from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.