In a heated election cycle that has already seen record vote-by-mail participation, the chance to cast a ballot in person has now started in Tampa Bay and much of Florida.
Voters showed up to early voting sites in the pre-dawn hours before doors opened, ready and waiting to cast ballots. In both Pinellas and Hillsborough counties, any long lines that formed appeared to move fairly quickly. In Hillsborough, 2,015 voters cast ballots in person in the first hour alone, while more voters drove by the sites to drop off mail ballots.
In Pinellas, one voter showed up as early as 4:45 a.m. to await the 7 a.m. opening of the early voting site at the elections service center in Largo, said poll worker Jackaline Shields. She said everyone was polite and understanding and said there was a “steady flow” of voters.
Maria Nunez, 55, said she waited in line for only 10 minutes at the elections service center in Largo to cast her vote for Joe Biden for president. She decided to vote early this year because “I wanted my vote to count. In the past, I didn’t really feel like my vote would change anything, but this year every vote matters.”
Don Bergeman, 78, said he was voting early for the first time ever because he hoped to avoid any long lines on Election Day. He said his experience at the Largo elections service center was better than expected.
Bergeman voted for President Donald Trump, saying Trump has had a “magnificent” four years — minus the coronavirus pandemic. “I’m just so proud of America,” Bergeman said. “I don’t want to see dramatic changes.”
Throughout Florida, 52 its 67 counties provided in-person early voting Monday, including all counties in the Tampa Bay region. Hours do vary by location.
With just two weeks to go until Election Day, about 2.5 million Floridians have cast ballots by mail already — not far off from the 2.6 million who did so for the entire 2018 general election.
Still, polling shows some voters — particularly Republicans — will likely shift more toward in-person voting this year. And overall turnout is expected to be strong this election, so it’s not clear how busy early voting sites will be.
Some county elections supervisors have warned voters that there might be lines, particularly on the first days or in the final few days of early voting, which draw higher turnout. Efforts to maintain safety at in-person sites, including social distancing rules and cleaning procedures, could also slow down voting.
Some states have had long waits in their first days of early voting this year, including Texas, Georgia and Virginia. But, particularly with the popularity of vote-by-mail in Florida, it’s doubtful the Sunshine State will see some of the hours-long lines reported in other parts of the country.
It’s also possible that early in-person voting could be modest. During Florida’s August primary, it accounted for only about 14 percent of total ballots cast. Mail ballots accounted for 60 percent.
By the time the polls opened Monday, voters had already lined up outside several Hillsborough County early voting sites. About 150 people queued up at Southshore Regional Library in Ruskin before 7 a.m., leading to a wait of about an hour, said Gerri Kramer, spokeswoman for the Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections Office.
A similar number lined up at the elections service center on Falkenburg Road in Tampa. Other sites, including Raymond James Stadium, didn’t appear to have any line or waiting.
At Amalie Arena in the Channel District, a “steady moving line” of people waited to cast ballots at the new early voting site in the minutes after it opened, Kramer said.
“Everything is moving quickly and going well,” she said.
Voters who cast ballots at Amalie got special Tampa Bay Lightning “I voted” stickers. Later, the Stanley Cup arrived so voters could pose for pictures with it and with Lightning mascot ThunderBug.
At the southeast elections office in Riverview, John McDowell, 74, brought his own folding chair with him to wait in line to vote. He and his wife, Carole, 80, say they have never missed an election; they waited outside for about 45 minutes before getting to go cast their ballots.
John McDowell said he voted for Biden. “More than ever we need to protect and improve our Social Security and Medicare,” he said.
Voters at Pinellas County’s early voting sites on Monday morning also appeared to be getting in to vote fairly quickly.
“We had a good line at downtown St. Pete to start the morning,” said Dustin Chase, spokesman for the county elections office. He said that line had dissipated by 7:30 a.m.
In South Florida, a rainy morning didn’t appear to dampen the enthusiasm for the first day of early voting, with reports of people queuing up at many sites throughout the region, some wielding umbrellas as they waited for their turn to cast a ballot.
Voters who come to early voting sites will see many of the same safety measures they’ve come to expect in other public spaces: social distancing, masks for poll workers, hand sanitizer and regular cleaning of machines and voting booths. Some counties are using plexiglass dividers or provide voters their own pens.
2020 is already being felt in one part of the state’s elections operations. The main elections office in Okaloosa County, which is next to Alabama and home to more than 200,000, abruptly closed to the public Sunday “until further notice” after Supervisor of Elections Paul Lux and an employee tested positive for the coronavirus. The office was supposed to house one of the county’s five early voting locations. Lux will “work remotely and self-isolate for the recommended time-period while operations for the Nov. 3 general election continue,” according to a press release from the elections office.
Meanwhile, in Orange County, the elections office’s website was down Monday morning as early voting got started. Elections Supervisor Bill Cowles said the website was not hacked and did not crash from overload, but was an “issue with the vendor on renewal," according to the Orlando Sentinel. The Sentinel reported that Cowles said the site should be back up shortly.
The start of in-person voting in Florida for the general election will be closely watched amid heightened concern in recent months about potential election safety and security issues, particularly after a call last month by President Donald Trump for his supporters to “go into the polls and watch very carefully” for evidence of voter fraud.
Elections officials have been reviewing security plans and working with law enforcement organizations and others in preparation for any potential disruptions or voter intimidation.
Thousands of approved poll watchers designated by candidates or political parties will be stationed at early voting sites to observe the voting process to look for any irregularities. There are well more than 1,000 approved poll watchers signed up for early voting in Hillsborough and Pinellas counties alone for early voting.
Poll watchers have to be registered voters in the county in which they are serving, and cannot be law enforcement officers. They have to be pre-approved by elections offices and there are a number of rules governing their conduct at voting sites, including wearing ID badges and not interacting with voters.
Unlike with Election Day, which requires voters to cast ballots only at their assigned precincts, voters can choose to go to any early voting site in the county.
Each early voting site will have a drop box for voters who want to turn in their mail ballots that way instead of putting them in the mail. Drop boxes are also located at elections offices. Some counties, like Pinellas, are also setting up drop boxes at other locations, as well.
Voters wanting to vote in person must bring a valid photo ID and signature verification.
Times staff writers Caitlin Johnston, Bailey LeFever, Juan Carlos Chavez and Dirk Shadd contributed to this story.
Early voting times and locations
CITRUS: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Oct. 19-31
• Central Ridge Library, 425 W. Roosevelt Blvd., Beverly Hills
• Crystal River Elections Office, 1500 N. Meadowcrest Blvd., Crystal River
• Homosassa Public Library, 4100 S. Grandmarch Ave., Homosassa
• Inverness City Hall, 212 W. Main St., Inverness
HERNANDO: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Oct. 19-31
• South Brooksville Community Center, 601 E. Martin Luther King Blvd., Brooksville
• Supervisor of Elections branch office, 7443 Forest Oaks Blvd., Spring Hill
• East Hernando Library, 6457 Windmere Road, Brooksville
• Spring Hill Branch Library, 9220 Spring Hill Drive, Spring Hill
• Hernando County Utilities Department, 15365 Cortez Blvd., Brooksville
HILLSBOROUGH: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Oct. 19-Nov. 1
• Apollo Beach Community Center, 664 Golf and Sea Blvd., Apollo Beach
• Austin Davis Public Library, 17808 Wayne Road, Odessa
• Bloomingdale Regional Public Library, 1906 Bloomingdale Ave., Valrico
• Bruton Memorial Library, 302 W McLendon St., Plant City, FL 33563
• C. Blythe Andrews, Jr. Public Library, 2607 E Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Tampa
• Fred B. Karl County Center, 601 E. Kennedy Blvd., Tampa
• Jan Kaminis Platt Regional Library, 3910 S. Manhattan Ave., Tampa
• Jimmie B. Keel Regional Public Library, 2902 W. Bearss Ave., Tampa
• Maureen B. Gauzza Public Library, 11211 Countryway Blvd., Tampa
• New Tampa Regional Library, 10001 Cross Creek Blvd., Tampa
• North Tampa Branch Library, 8916 N Blvd., Tampa
• Northdale Recreation Center, 15550 Spring Pine Drive, Tampa
• Port Tampa Community Center, 4702 W. McCoy St., Tampa
• Providence West Community Center, 5405 Providence Road, Riverview
• Riverview Branch Library, 10509 Riverview Drive, Riverview
• Robert L. Gilder Elections Service Center, 2514 N. Falkenburg Road, Tampa
• SouthShore Regional Library, 15816 Beth Shields Way, Ruskin
• Northwest Elections Office, 4575 Gunn Highway, Tampa
• Southeast Elections Office, 10020 S U.S. Highway 301, Riverview
• USF TECO Hall (David C. Anchin Center), 4110 USF Apple Drive, Tampa
• Temple Terrace Public Library, 202 Bullard Parkway, Temple Terrace
• Town ‘N Country Regional Public Library, 7606 Paula Drive, Tampa
• West Tampa Branch Library, 2312 W. Union St., Tampa
• University Area Community Center, 14013 N. 22nd St., Tampa
• Amalie Arena, 401 Channelside Drive, Tampa
• Raymond James Stadium, 4201 N. Dale Mabry Highway, Tampa
MANATEE: 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Oct. 19-Nov. 1
• Lakewood Ranch Town Hall, 8175 Lakewood Ranch Blvd., Lakewood Ranch
• Manatee County Utilities Administration, 4410 66th St. W, Bradenton
• Palmetto Library, 923 6th St. W, Palmetto
• Rocky Bluff Library, 6750 U.S. Highway 301, Ellenton
• Supervisor of Elections Office, 600 301 Blvd. W, Suite 118, Bradenton
• FL Department of Transportation Operations Center, 14000 State Road 64 E., Bradenton
PASCO: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Oct. 19-31
• West Pasco Government Center, 8731 Citizens Drive, New Port Richey
• East Pasco Government Center, 14236 6th St., Dade City
• Land O’ Lakes Recreation Complex, 3032 Collier Parkway, Land O' Lakes
• Hudson Library, 8012 Library Road, Hudson
• New River Library, 34043 State Road 54, Wesley Chapel
• Odessa Community Center, 1627 Chesapeake Drive, Odessa
• Pasco County Utilities Administration Building, 19420 Central Blvd., Land O' Lakes
• Regency Park Library, 9701 Little Road, New Port Richey
• South Holiday Library, 4649 Mile Stretch Drive, Holiday
• Advent Health Center Ice, 3173 Cypress Ridge Blvd., Wesley Chapel
• Alice Hall Community Center, 38116 5th Ave., Zephyrhills
• Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus of Pasco County, 3021 Sports Coast Way, Wesley Chapel
• Veterans Memorial Park, 14333 Hicks Road, Hudson
• J. Ben Harrill Recreation Complex, 2830 Gulf Trace Blvd., Holiday
PINELLAS: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Oct. 19-Nov. 1
• Supervisor of Elections Office - Election Service Center, 13001 Starkey Road, Largo
• Supervisor of Elections Office - County Courthouse, 315 Court St. Room 117, Clearwater
• Supervisor of Elections Office - County Building, 501 First Ave. N., St. Petersburg
• The Centre of Palm Harbor, 1500 16th St., Palm Harbor
• SPC Allstate Center, 3200 34th St. S., St. Petersburg
POLK: 7 a.m. to 7 pm., Oct. 19-Nov. 1
• Polk Street Community Center, 1255 Polk St., Bartow
• Polk County Sheriffs Northeast District Office, 1100 Dunson Road, Davenport
• Haines City Library, 111 N. 6th St., Haines City
• Polk County Government Center, 930 E. Parker St., Lakeland
• Simpson Park Community Center, 1725 Martin L. King Jr. Ave., Lakeland
• James P. Austin Community Center, 315 Doctor MLK Jr. Blvd., Lake Wales
• Mulberry Civic Center, 901 N.E. 5th St., Mulberry
• Poinciana Community Center, 395 Marigold Ave., Poinciana
• Gill Jones Northeast Polk County Government Center, 3425 Lake Alfred Road, Winter Haven
SARASOTA: 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Oct. 19-Nov. 1
• Supervisor of Elections Office - Sarasota, 2001 Adams Lane, Sarasota
• Supervisor of Elections Office - Venice, R.L. Anderson Administration Building, 4000 Tamiami Trail S., Venice
• Supervisor of Elections Office - North Port, Biscayne Plaza, 13640 Tamiami Trail, North Port
• Sarasota Square Mall, 8201 S. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota
• North Sarasota Library, 2801 S. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota
• Fruitville Library, 100 Apex Road, Sarasota
• Shannon Staub Library, 4675 Career Lane, North Port
• Bee Ridge Park, 4430 S. Lockwood Ridge Road, Sarasota
VOTER GUIDE: You can access our Know Your Candidates guide with information on local races at tampabay.com/voterguide.
HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT VOTING IN FLORIDA? WE HAVE THE ANSWERS: We’ve compiled information on early voting locations, rules for voting by mail and more.
AMENDMENTS: State constitutional amendments on the 2020 ballot, explained.
FELONY CONVICTION? Here are Florida’s rules for registering to vote.
MAIL-IN BALLOTS: So you want to vote by mail in Florida? Here’s what you need to know.
POSTAL SERVICE CONCERNS: What’s going on with the U.S. Postal Service and should Florida be worried?
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